The Weasel's Cub
by Macabre Facsimile
Summary: Training yourself to exhaustion is never a good idea, especially if you add an isolated forest and a lustful missing-nin into the equation. DARK AND GRAPHIC CONTENT. NON-CON.
1. Chapter 1

**Despite him being 12/13 during this event in canon, I am writing under the presumption that Naruto is sixteen in this story. That's the age of consent where I live. This fic has dark content, so if you are under the age of eighteen or are easily triggered by such themes, then please do not read. **

**Trigger warnings: Sexual assault, non-consent, young age. You have been warned. **

**I do not condone the actions described in this fic. **

**Don't like the content of this fic? Don't read it. Simple.**

A village without a leader stood tall and still, its people mourning in silence. Today marked the funeral of Sarutobi Hiruzen, The heroic third hokage of Konoha.

The main ceremony had been quiet and simple, attended by thousands despite the driving rain. The following "party" was similarly crowded; a quiet celebration of Hiruzen's life where food and drinks were served for free. People gathered around to tell stories of the old man, to reminisce on "the good ol' days."

The rain had stopped soon enough, prompting the crowds to spill out onto the streets. A sake-fuelled party began, as they put their grief aside to spend a cheerful night in memory of their leader.

Nobody had noticed when a blond teen quietly left the area, His blue eyes sparkling with unshed tears.

Deep in the forest surrounding Konoha, the "poof" of dispelling shadow clones startled a flock of crows. They flew into the air, disappearing over the treeline. The noise was soon followed by the thud of a body hitting the ground.

Uzumaki Naruto lay panting on the ground, unable to lift even a finger as exhaustion set in.

"Aah. I've really done it this time." He muttered tiredly. A voice within his head laughed, the deep rumble making the teen's head hurt.

'_**You only have yourself to blame. You were warned not to train until you healed, were you not?'**_

"Can it, fuzzbut." Naruto growled as he stared at the sky. "Just heal me up already so I can get going. I don't wanna sit out here all night."

'_**How do you expect me to do that when you've just used up almost all of your chakra? I could definitely heal you if you'd just remove this seal-'**_

"And let you go on a rampage? No thanks."

A semi-familiar chakra signature suddenly appeared, and the blond felt himself relax slightly.

"Sasuke? Is that you?" He asked, calling into the silent air. No response. "Teme!"

The figure shifted but still did not reply.

"I…" Naruto began, gritting his teeth and swallowing his pride. "I need your help. I can't move."

Footsteps began to make their way towards him, the sound causing the hairs on the back of the teen's neck to stand up.

'_Teme doesn't walk like that.' _He realised, as a wave of fear coursed through him.

A burst of adrenaline allowed the downed blond to scramble into a sitting position, twisting around to face the other person. Scarlet eyes captured his gaze, seeming to drain what little energy remained in his body.

It was clear that he was face to face with an Uchiha considering the swirling sharingan, but it was certainly not Sasuke.

"Well if it isn't the ninth junchuuriki." A deep, yet surprisingly soft voice spoke. "How convenient."

"Who are you?" Naruto yelled – or at least he tried to yell, but it came out as little more than a whimper.

"I'm hurt." The Uchiha seemed to purr. "You seem to know my foolish brother, and yet he hasn't said anything about me."

That was all the blond needed to hear as his eyes widened.

"Y-you!" He spluttered. "What are you doing here Itachi!?"

"Surveillance, obviously."

Naruto found his throat constricting as the man begun to drag his defenceless body towards a tree, propping him in a seated position against its trunk.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't yell as loud as I can right now." He growled once he found his voice again. He was bluffing, and Itachi knew it.

"You and I both know that no one will hear you." Came the response. "That's why you came so far away from the village in the first place, is it not?"

Naruto lowered his gaze to the ground, his heart sinking. The Uchiha was correct; he was on his own out here. He'd _wanted _to be on his own.

"Besides" Itachi continued, a hint of a smirk crossing his lips. "If you open your mouth wide enough, I might just… fill it up."

There was a glint in his eye, one that matched the predatorial tone his voice had taken on. It filled the teen with dread.

"Just tell me why you're here." He muttered.

Itachi crouched in front of the blond, reaching out a hand to caress his cheek. He wanted nothing more than to move his head as far away as he could, but the effects of the genjutsu he'd seemingly been placed in would not allow it.

"You'll find out soon enough, little cub."

Surprisingly soft fingers trailed up Naruto's neck, forcing his chin upwards so that their eyes met. The Uchiha moved forwards, leaning over until his lips were mere inches away from the teen's left ear. He whispered quietly, every breath tickling Naruto's ear and filling him with disgust.

"While my partner is busy, I'm going to have some fun." He stated. "And if you cooperate, I'll make sure it's fun for you too."

The blond froze as a cold hand made its way underneath his shirt, making him shiver. He might have skipped a few classes back when he was at the academy, but he knew enough to understand Itachi's true intentions.

The helplessness was stifling, filling him with anger. He wanted to do something – _anything! _– but he was powerless under the sharingan's power. So he waited, and watched as the Uchiha leaned back to remove his cloak. He gathered as much saliva as he could muster in that moment, spitting it right at his attacker. It landed right in the middle of his forehead, catching the man off guard.

The sense of fear rooted deep within him suddenly magnified as Itachi's lustful gaze morphed into an evil glare.

"If that's how you want to play it, fine." He hissed. "If you won't cooperate with me, then I'll just have to take you by force!"

A hand shot out, closing around Naruto's throat as the dark haired man threw him away from the tree. He landed in a crumpled heap on the floor, the jolting movement breaking the genjutsu. Before he could move, though, he was roughly turned onto his back, and his arms were held above his head by an enraged Itachi.

The Uchiha had dropped to his knees, straddling the teen's waist so as to prevent him from kicking.

"Get off me!" The blond yelled, struggling with all his might despite his chakra reserves still being depleted.

"I could easily put you back into a genjutsu;" Itachi replied. "But it'll be more fun when you struggle."

The teen's attempts to escape became more frantic at this, causing the older man to let out a pleasured groan. He pulled out a kunai and began to slice at the black t-shirt beneath him, tearing the tattered cloth from Naruto's body.

With a practiced movement, the Uchiha reached down and pulled down his pants, allowing his aching member to spring forth. It took all of his resolve not to just take the blond there and then, but he knew that his patience would certainly be worth the reward.

"You know you're going to be hunted down for this." Naruto spat, pausing in his struggles for long enough to send him a look of pure loathing.

Itachi simply chuckled lightly as he slowly pumped his cock, relishing in the pleasure that was washing through him.

"It's not like I'm not used to being hunted down." He replied lazily. "After all, if I can survive for several years after destroying my whole clan, I'm sure something as trivial as this isn't going to cause a fuss."

Naruto had no response to that. He ceased his movement, realising that there was little point in it, and instead looked around for a way to save himself. Unfortunately he could find nothing to aid him.

"You're not going to tell anybody about this, anyway." The Uchiha continued, taking advantage of the sudden stillness to grind his hips into Naruto's crotch and smirking as he felt it harden slightly. "Because everyone will be disgusted with you."

He leaned down towards the blond, gently biting down on his right earlobe and eliciting a muffled shout in return. His free hand, the one that wasn't holding his wrists, began to inch down Naruto's abs, fingers tracing the well-worked muscles. As he reached the waistband of his pants, ltachi paused for a second and studied the teen's face. A pink glow adorned his cheeks, turning the missing-nin on even more than he already was.

"I mean look at you. You're just letting me do as l please." His fingers pulled at the elasticated fabric, then allowed it to bounce back with a snap. "Of course, I'll reward you for this."

The Uchiha lifted his hips up to allow himself better access, then reached in to naruto's boxers and grasped his semi-hard length. But before he could do anything else, the blond sensed an opportunity and buried his knee in the unsuspecting man's crotch.

Itachi rolled off of the boy, clutching his balls as they exploded in pain. As the agony subsided, he looked over to where Naruto was pathetically trying to run/crawl away, and a red mist descended on him. It took less than a second to catch up with the fleeing teen and tackle him face-first to the ground, violently ripping down his pants and boxers in one fluid movement.

"I gave you the opportunity to play nice. I even gave you a second chance." He growled, laying directly on top of the now shivering teen and whispering harshly into his ear. His erection was pressed flat against Naruto's backside, twitching in anticipation. "But seeing as you're clearly not going to behave, I'll just have to get it over with."

Shifting his hips, Itachi lined himself up at the blond's entrance… and paused.

"Ah, I almost forgot." He muttered, before shifting back up so that he was once more straddling the teen, and pulled his shoulders up painfully so that his abdomen was exposed. Placing his hands into a seal, the Uchiha then placed them both on to his captive's stomach, one either side of his bellybutton.

Excruciating pain raced through Naruto for several moments, beginning where itachi's hands were pressed and radiating throughout his body in waves, pulling the air from his lungs.

"What the hell did you just do!?" The blond muttered through gritted teeth once he had caught his breath.

His captor chose not to answer, instead reassuming his earlier position and pressing his aching rod against Naruto's ass. His weak attempts to escape did little more than annoy the impatient man, who cast a water jutsu to lubricate himself and began to force his way through the ring of muscles.

"If you had behaved instead of insisting on trying to escape, I would have made this much less painful for you." He gasped, ignoring the teen's agonized yells as he pushed further. The head of his penis had now breached the tight hole, and just the pressure alone made him want to release his load.

The Uchiha bit down on Naruto's neck, his teeth sinking into the soft flesh far enough to draw blood as he rammed his cock forwards, burying it down to the hilt in a swift movement.

Screams turned into wailing as the teen below him squirmed and twitched, trying his hardest to get rid of the feeling of being stretched out. His cries mixed with the Itachi's groans and pants as the movement brought waves of pleasure crashing through him.

'_It's so hot, so tight!_'

Not allowing Naruto any time to adjust, he pulled himself out of his captive's ass, until only the tip remained inside. Then without warning he slammed back inside, letting out a shout of his own.

He continued this cycle of slowly pulling out and then slamming back in, until the teen's cries began to fade into grunts and the pain began to subside. On one particular thrust Itachi seemed to hit his prostate, turning his vision white and forcing an outright moan from him. The unexpected tightening of his already-tight rectum proved to be too much for the Uchiha, and he suddenly picked up his pace with a deep groan. He made sure to hit his prostate with each thrust, earning several delicious grunts from his captive.

"I-Itachi… No…" Naruto tried to beg, but the horrible pleasure was robbing him of his thought patterns.

"Imagine what your friends would say if they could see you now." He panted in response. "I wonder what Sasuke would do, if he could see you being taken by the one person he swore to kill, moaning my name like some common whore"

Itachi paused in his thrusts, pulling the teen backwards so that he was propped up on his knees. The new angle allowed him to reach down and grasp Naruto's cock, pumping it up and down as he renewed his movement.

A new feeling began to build in the pit of the teen's stomach, bringing with it an overwhelming sense of shame. Despite the fact that he didn't want this, there was still a traitorous part off him that didn't want it to stop; that craved this unbelievable feeling of pleasure that was coursing through him in waves.

"P-please…" He begged. But now he didn't know if he was begging for help or for release.

Behind him, Itachi's breaths were becoming far more laboured, his powerful thrusts becoming more and more erratic. It was clear that he was nearing climax, just as Naruto was.

"I'm about to come." He grunted in Naruto's ear, squeezing his bulging member, effectively preventing him from reaching his own climax. His soft voice had become husky and deep. "call my name, Naruto. I want to hear you screaming out my name as we come."

The hand was clenched painfully tight around him, the building pressure fogging up his brain. The teen tried to shake his head, determined not to follow his captors orders, but a particularly hard collision with his prostate destroyed what little resolve he had left.

"I-Ita-…" he sobbed. But the Uchiha just sneered.

"you're going to have to do better than that." His words were accompanied by several devastating thrusts, pushing Naruto over the edge. But the man wouldn't let him go.

"I-Ita-ITACHIIII!" He finally called, his words blending into a piercing scream as he felt the Uchiha release his grip.

Naruto felt himself being pulled upwards by Itachi, far enough that he was now seated in his lap, back pressed against the man's chest. With one final thrust, reaching deeper into the teen than ever before, Itachi let out a strangled gasp as he exploded inside of his captive. He bit down on the already-healing mark on Naruto's shoulder, this time using chakra to make sure it scarred. The blond went limp as he decorated the ground with a smattering of sperm, but was caught by itachi, who was careful to keep himself inside the teen's ass as he filled him up.

"You're mine now." He growled, fingering the scar he'd created. Naruto could do little more than sniffle.

[Five weeks later]

When Naruto had finally regained enough strength to move, he'd quickly gotten dressed – as best as he'd been able to with his ripped shirt - and gone home. He didn't tell a soul about what had happened; not even when Jiraiya had let himself in to his apartment the following morning, having crept through the window and caught him in the middle of a nightmare.

The pervert had assumed it was about the fight he'd had with Gaara. He chose not to correct him.

Then he'd started talking about a trip to find another of the legendary Sannin, who was hopefully the next candidate for hokage. Obviously he'd agreed to that because Jiraiya would have been suspicious that something had happened otherwise.

Throughout their journey, Naruto found himself immersed in his training as Jiraiya had decided to teach him a new ninjutsu: The rasengan. By the time he'd learned the first three stages, they'd found Tsunade and told her what had happened. After a lengthy rant about how the position of hokage was a curse, they'd ended up creating a bet. If Naruto could master the rasengan in the given time, Tsunade would give him her necklace and become hokage.

After a plot to kill Orochimaru nearly turned sour, a fight had ensued that Jiraiya, Naruto and Tsunade had narrowly won. After Orochimaru's apprentice Kabuto took a fully-formed rasengan to the chest, Naruto won the bet.

Now they were stood outside of the restaurant they'd first met at, each preparing to fight the other. It was a scene very similar to the one in which they had made the bet in the first place.

"I'll beat you this time, granny!" Naruto yelled as he faced off with the Senju.

"I'll defeat you just the same as I did last time." She replied coolly. "With one finger!"

Naruto darted forward with a grin, only for a flick to the forehead to throw him backwards, the action dislodging his hitai-ate. He easily fell into a backwards roll, landing in a crouch and using chakra to leap right back at her. She dodged just far enough to catch the back of his jacket with a finger, swinging him around so that he landed on his feet, directly facing her. Before he could react, Tsunade used the collar of his jacket to pull him towards her – and landed a kiss on his forehead.

Naruto stepped back, spluttering at the unexpected action.

"What was that for? Damn granny!" He yelled amusedly, but then a serious expression suddenly marred his face. In a quiet voice, he muttered, "I'm going to-"

He couldn't say anything else as he suddenly keeled over, splattering the ground with vomit. Tsunade, being closest, was able to dart forward and catch him as his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed.

The amiable mood was long forgotten as the Senju laid the blond down on the ground – of course taking care to avoid the vomit – and began casting a diagnostic medical jutsu.

The blood drained from her face as she studied the teen, prompting both Shizune and Jiraiya to ask her what was wrong. With a dumbfounded expression, Tsunade quietly explained.

"There's a second life within the boy." She muttered.

Jiraiya cut in with a laugh, lowering his voice in case anyone was listening. "Don't worry, that's the Kyuubi." He stated. "He is our jinchuuriki."

But Tsunade shook her head, seemingly paling even further.

"No, I don't mean the Kyuubi. I mean another life."

"Another… you don't mean!?"

"I'm guessing it's through the use of a forbidden jutsu… but yes. Naruto is somehow pregnant."

**My first lemon. Let me know how I did with this.**

**If you liked the oneshot and want to see it turned into a story, let me know in a review. **

**If you have any ideas for new oneshots or stories that follow a dark/smut theme, also let me know in a review.**

**Thanks for reading.**


	2. Chapter 2

**As requested, I'm turning this one-shot into a story. But before you get into it, I have a preferential question regarding another one-shot I have in the works.**

**It's a simple story, but at a certain point it can branch off into two different scenarios. I plan on writing both scenarios but I'm too lazy to rewrite the start. So essentially I have two stories which start the same but end on a different note. **

**Should I publish both as separate stories or as two chapters of the same story? What if one of them gets turned into a multi-chapter but the other doesn't? If it is published as the latter would I have to republish it on its own at a later date?**

**I need opinions. Let me know.**

* * *

**Chapter 2**

It was with a degree of confusion that Naruto awoke, perched upon his sensei's broad shoulders like a particularly limp backpack as they jumped from one tree to another. He'd been having a particularly intense nightmare, one which involved a certain someone who looked far too much like Sasuke.

When he did come to his senses though, the absurdity of the way he was being lugged around finally started to sink in, and he quickly twisted out of Jiraiya's grasp, neatly landing in a crouch on the floor below before looking around himself.

"This is the Konoha forest." He remarked simply, once everyone had jumped down to him. "How did we get here so fast?"

His ero-sennin turned to him with a stupid grin, clapping a firm hand to his shoulder as he pulled out a notebook with the other one.

"Never mind that, how could you not tell me!?" He giggled. "I honestly had you pinned as a girls' guy myself."

"I… what?"

"C'mon, Naruto, don't be such a prude! Tell me, who was it? What did it feel like? Were you always a bottom or did you just try it this once? This is prime research material here, you've gotta-"

A solid right hook courtesy of Tsunade flung Jiraiya into the air, landing him several feet up a nearby tree. A cluster of branches held him for a few brief seconds, before relinquishing their grip and dumping him rather unceremoniously on to the ground below.

Naruto for his part watched the scene quietly, trying to make sense of what his sensei had just asked. But before he could come to his own solutions, the sannin had gotten up, dusted himself off and crouched in front of the teen.

"So who's the lucky guy?"

The colour must have drained from Naruto's face, as a moment later all three adults were shooting him concerned looks. He dropped his head, staring down at his feet as he tried to think of a response to that question. After several moments he looked up, biting his lip anxiously.

"How…" Was all he could ask, his voice so low it was scarcely more than a whisper. He suppressed a flinch as Jiraiya was shoved aside, this time landing in a thorny bush, before Tsunade took his place.

"Naruto, what's the last thing you remember?" She asked simply, jumping into 'doctor mode'.

The teen's face scrunched up as the memory of a bitter taste popped into his mind.

"Vomit."

"You passed out after that." The Senju continued. She placed a comforting hand on Naruto's arm, guiding him to a nearby fallen tree and encouraging him to sit down. "I was worried, of course, so I used a simple diagnostic jutsu…"

Naruto's expression remained guarded as she spoke, mirrored by the growing tension within his stomach. He still refused to look the woman in the eye.

"I couldn't believe it at first, but I found another trace of life within your body."

"Oh, that's-"

"Not the Kyuubi." Tsunade cut in, knowing what he was about to say. "I mean I found a life growing within you. A foetus."

She sighed as the blond still didn't offer a response.

"You're pregnant, Naruto."

His shoulders slumped, the only sign that he'd even heard what she said in the first place. Naruto remained silent, probably trying to process the news, and it wasn't until the medic was about to speak again that he finally replied,

"I thought I might be."

This hadn't been the response she was expecting, but she rolled with it anyway.

"Of course, there are people you can talk to about this." She continued. "And as hokage, I fully intend to grant you any support you-"

"I don't want it."

"I'm afraid it's not as-"

"Get rid of it. Please. I can't have his baby."

It was more of an order than a request, and it made Tsunade's heart ache for the kid,

"Naruto… the thing is…" She spoke slowly, trying to think of the best way to word what she had to say. "Well, the jutsu that was used… it's a forbidden jutsu. It was designed to protect the baby at all costs."

"Then reverse the jutsu." His voice was cold and emotionless, and shockingly different to the happy-go-lucky attitude he usually maintained.

"I can't."

"What do you mean you can't!?" The teen stood up, his breathing rate steadily increasing as his desperation grew. "I couldn't give a shit if you have to rip this… this _thing _out of me with your bare hands, _I want you to get rid of it_!"

Tsunade stood up beside him, placing a hand on either shoulder as much to restrain him as support him. He tried to wrench himself out of her grasp, still refusing to hold her gaze, but she stood firm.

"Listen to me. This jutsu is designed to put your baby into a protective bubble. If that bubble is popped, if it's even slightly messed with in a way that the jutsu doesn't like, it will kill you. There is no way to abort."

Naruto opened and closed his mouth several times, then set his jaw and turned away. When he found himself still held in place, he instead used a burst of chakra to force his way out of the Senju's grip, jumping up and clinging to one of the many branches above him.

"Where are you going?" Shizune tried to ask, but he levelled a glare at her. The teen paused for a moment more, before turning and jumping into the trees.

He had no idea whether or not they noticed the tears welling up in the corners of his eyes, but then it wasn't like he particularly cared.

* * *

Time went by with a quiet sense of urgency, lengthening shadows and darkening clearings as it passed. But still Naruto did not move.

After sprinting away from the clearing, the blond had taken refuge among the roots of a towering oak tree, then curled up into a ball as his carefully bottled emotions burst forth. He was honestly surprised that neither Shizune nor the two sannin had come to look for him, but perhaps they'd seen sense and allowed him the alone time he desperately craved.

It had been a dream that set off his alarm bells to begin with. One he'd fantasized about many a time in the past. A dream where he and Sakura stood arm-in-arm, watching as a pink haired boy with whiskered cheeks ran through the gates of the ninja academy, clearly starting his first day.

Their son.

There was no particular meaning to the dream, really. It had just been a fantasy that Naruto had allowed himself to consider when he chased Sakura around. But the sight of a son that didn't exist had brought back the memory of the jutsu Itachi had used on him. It had planted the figurative seed, and since then the concerns had only grown.

He'd stubbornly ignored the warning signs. Even when he was waking up every morning ready to projectile vomit what little food he'd eaten, he had just put it down to shock over what had happened. Who'd ever heard of a male pregnancy, anyway?

Except it hadn't been shock. Now he knew for certain, and the idea that the genes of the man who'd slaughtered his teammate's clan were growing inside of him was perhaps even more sickening.

Sasuke… how could Naruto break that news to him? How would he be able to look that teme in the face and tell him that his sworn enemy was about to give him a nephew? He supposed it was probably for the best that Tsunade had worked out what had happened – hopefully they could come up with a plan, work something out that could keep Sasuke in the dark. After he'd been hit with that curse mark, the last thing he needed was to find out something like that.

Ah, speak of the devil. He could hear her calling for him now. Being a sannin, she found his little hiding spot quickly enough, and squeezed into the little cove beside him.

"I know I'm probably the last person you want to talk to right now, but we need to work things out."

'_Gee, no shit._' He snarked inwardly. But given that he would need this woman on his side, he instead gave her a simple nod.

"First of all, I need to know a few things. You're obviously hesitant to talk about it, so I'm going to give you simple statements. Hell, you don't even need to speak to me, just nod or shake your head to explain whether they're true or false."

That certainly made things easier. Naruto chose to take her up on it, not trusting himself to speak without his voice breaking.

"Your baby is the product of male-on-male intercourse."

_True_.

"The male ejaculated into you."

_True._

"You didn't know that the intercourse would result in pregnancy."

_True._

"If you _had _known that it would result in pregnancy, you would not have done it in the first place."

A sudden rush of emotion took Naruto by surprise, and he couldn't bring himself to answer.

"I know this is hard Naruto, but I need to understand these things so that I know where to go from here."

The teen tried to speak, but a lump had formed in his throat, and all that came out was a sob. Strong arms wrapped around him as Tsunade brought him into a gentle hug.

"I didn't…" He tried again, only to be cut off by another sob. The doctor rubbed his back soothingly, telling him to take his time.

"I didn't want to."

The simple statement brought another flood of tears, and Naruto tried not to think about the way Tsunade's hand had suddenly stilled.

"You're going to have to be more specific, kid."

She already knew what he meant, but without a direct statement there was no way of being certain.

"I didn't want to do it. I… I fought him. I tried to stop him, but he wouldn't stop."

The words were now tumbling out, a stark contrast to his earlier quietness.

"I hate myself so much, because it felt so good even though I didn't want to!"

"You… were taken against your own will."

It was another statement. Another true or false. Though it was spoken in a more emotional voice.

"It's t-true."

"Is he a Konoha citizen?"

Yes and no. Itachi is an Uchiha… but he's also a missing-nin.

"…He was. Not anymore."

Tsunade nodded, apparently having everything she needed to know for the time being. She remained quiet as Naruto slowly calmed down, only releasing him from the hug when he pulled himself away.

"Where are they?" He asked, referring to Jiraiya and Shizune.

"I sensed your chakra, so I sent them to Konoha to deliver the good news. We're only ten minutes away from the gates now, as the hawk flies, if you're ready to get going."

"I guess so, but… well, can we go slowly? I still want to talk."

The senju obliged, crawling out from underneath the tree and helping Naruto to his feet. They began to head back to the village at a leisurely pace; one which would lengthen their time to around an hour. It was surprising how much of a difference it made to be able to talk about what happened – Naruto found his mind was clearer than ever now that the tears had dried.

"We need to plan something out." He began. Tsunade nodded. "I don't want anyone to know."

"Not even your team?"

"Especially my team. Sakura would be disgusted with me, Sasuke would hate me."

"And your sensei? What would he say?"

"I… don't know. He would probably laugh a bit, really. He reads Ero-sennin's books in public."

The sannin couldn't help but let out a small laugh at that. When Naruto send her a quizzical look, she quickly explained that just from that description alone she knew exactly who they were talking about.

"Jiraiya talks about him. Apparently he met Jiraiya in a strip club once, and fanboy-ed over him so hard that he was swamped by girls for the rest of that night, all of them thinking he was some superstar or something."

He raised an eyebrow, committing this information to memory as future blackmail material.

"In any case, you won't really start to show for another couple of months, so you're fine to continue taking D-rank missions if you want to. Some babysitting jobs would be great for you, I'd say."

The teen winced at that. He REALLY didn't want to think about having to raise a child right now.

"When you do start to show, I'm sure you could use a henge to cover it up, at least for your teammates' sake. Kakashi might see through it, but I'm willing to bet that he wouldn't bring it up unless you did."

"You're willing to bet on it? That's worrying."

Tsunade hit him gently on the shoulder, obviously holding back a lot due to his condition.

"Brat."

"Old bag."

They shared a laugh, but the mood quickly sank as their thoughts turned back to the issue at hand.

"Given the nature of your work, it's best if you start toning it down after four months." She stated. "The physical demand that comes with taking missions may cause miscarriages, and I fear for the safety of both you and your child if that happens. We simply don't know what this jutsu is capable of."

"What am I going to say to everyone? I can't just… stop turning up. They'll start looking for me."

"We have four months to think of that. I believe that Jiraiya was thinking of taking you on a training trip, so perhaps that's an option."

"I don't know… when we were looking for you, he was always leaving me on my own to train while he went to bars and flirted with everyone. I'd rather stay in the village – at least I know there are ANBU around."

They walked for a while, each remaining within their own thoughts.

"What about ANBU?" She asked eventually. "They're secretive, keep to themselves and they have whole networks of underground areas. I'm sure they have housing down there too."

"But that still wouldn't explain what's happening to my team."

"Well actually it does. You were directly involved with a fight between the three legendary sannin, and lived to tell the tale. Both Jiraiya and I are witnesses to that. So once I'm sworn in as hokage, I can speak with the head of ANBU and arrange for you to spend the remaining couple of months of your pregnancy within their headquarters. I can tell Kakashi that you were drafted in for ANBU training."

"That's a good idea, I think that'll work for now." Naruto commended with a small smile. "But what about when I suddenly turn up with a child that may or may not look like me, and may or may not come to have the sharingan?"

"Well… we could say you picked the kid up on a mission. Make up a sob story about watching his parents die, adopting him as your own because he reminded you a lot of yourself and wanted to give him a good life. It would be a good explanation for why you left the ANBU so soon after joining."

Silence reigned for a few moments, before something clicked.

"Wait - the sharingan?"

The wide-eyed gaze on Naruto's face was enough for Tsunade to connect the dots.

"Oh… I see. That's… well, it complicates things a bit, doesn't it? But then again, even if the child does manifest the sharingan, I'm sure it would take a few years for that to happen."

When they reached the gates, Tsunade gave the teen a tight hug.

"If you need anything from now on, you know where I am." She told him. I'm sure I'll see you and your team later on when you take another mission from time to time!"

They bade one another goodnight, then each went their separate ways. Tsunade headed to the hokage tower, figuring that she might as well make a start on business, while Naruto went to Ichiraku ramen, grabbed a to-go box and headed home.

A lot of things were bound to change in his life from this point, but he'd be damned if Ichiraku ramen was one of them.

* * *

[Two months later]

Naruto grumbled aloud as his alarm clock sounded, signalling the beginning of a new day. He'd barely gotten any sleep, as per usual, and Kakashi had been talking about taking lots of back-to-back missions today.

The teen got up with difficulty, doing his best not to let out a curse as his swollen belly got in his way.

'_Damn that old granny.' _He muttered internally. _'Two months before starting to show? My ass.'_

His stomach had begun bulging considerably not even three weeks after their conversation, leading to him having to use henge far sooner than he'd expected. It had seemed to work for him though, as neither Sakura nor Sasuke had even mentioned it, and Kakashi was… well, Kakashi. Though he did -send the blond a funny look every now and then, it seemed as though Tsunade had been right about him not mentioning the subject.

Naruto had put the misinformation down to a mistake on the hokage's part. After all, she surely wouldn't have been able to tell exactly when the baby had been created, so there should have been plenty of room for error there.

As he padded to the kitchen, he made note of the cloudy sky outside.

'_Rain, huh. That's supposed to be a bad omen. The last time it rained here was…' _

He shook his head. Now was not the time to be thinking about the hokage's funeral, nor the horrible events that had followed. Instead, he went over to the fridge and took out two bento boxes. He stuffed one into the backpack he'd taken to wearing on missions, then brought the other to the table and began to eat.

After spying his haggard complexion one day, Tsunade had sent Shizune over to grill him about the food he was eating. When he'd explained that he really had no idea what to eat, especially considering most shopkeepers wouldn't serve him, the lady had taken it upon herself to provide him with enough bento boxes to last him for the next few weeks. It was good enough food, but he had to admit he really missed his ramen.

'_Only another… what, six months? Aw, man.'_

A knock at the door distracted Naruto from his internal pouting, and he suppressed a sigh.

"Be there in a sec!" He called, quickly activating a henge and looking himself over in a mirror. Eh, he still looked pretty gaunt, but at least now he didn't look outright malnourished.

Surprisingly enough, when Naruto answered the door, it was Kakashi who greeted him on the other side. In all honesty, the teen hadn't thought that the jounin might know where he lived, but that thought was dwarfed by the fact that his sensei, who was notorious for being late, _had shown up early!_

"Oh, hey sensei. I'm not late am I?" He asked distractedly as he invited the man in. He was suddenly, painfully aware of the sheet of paper he'd left on his dining table, which contained a list of different names. Kakashi seemed to have noticed what had captured the teen's attention, as he strolled forwards and picked it up.

He was tempted to snatch it out of his sensei's hands, but he knew that it would only make him more suspicious.

"No, I just came to say that there had been a change of plans for today." He replied, and Naruto was sure his eye had narrowed as he read. "What's with the names?"

"Oh, I uh, thought I might get a dog at some point." The blond stated, picking the first excuse he could think of. "But I didn't know if I would suit one, so I wrote down a few of the listed ones in the pet shop and I thought maybe I could go to meet them."

It was a shoddy excuse, but it seemed believable enough – so much so, in fact, that Kakashi's visible eye seemed to light up. He bit his thumb, running through a few hand seals… and summoned Pakkun, one of his nin-dogs.

"Well if you want experience looking after dogs, you can always look after this guy for the day." He suggested.

Naruto was in far too deep to just refuse the offer now, so he nodded hesitantly and crouched down to greet him.

"Hey Pakkun, do you mind if I look after you today?" He asked, then turned to Kakashi. "…actually, you said there's been a change of plan right? What's going on?"

"Aah yes, there has been a sudden decrease in D-ranks lately, as the rebuild effort after the invasion has finally been completed. There are so many genin expecting to take D-ranks that the godaime has had to limit them to 2 missions, per team, per day. So we're going to take those two missions earlier than expected, then get some sparring underway. I've already spoken to Sasuke and Sakura, and they're probably waiting for us now."

"Okay, just give me a moment and I'll be ready." Naruto said, picking up the readily-packed backpack. "I have, like, half a bento here if you're hungry. Or I could give it to Pakkun…?"

The pug let out a little 'yip' at that, and Kakashi nodded to him.

"I'll take that, if you will." He barked, immediately beginning to scoff the food as soon as Naruto set it down.

"It's interesting that you're eating so healthy." The jounin remarked a few minutes later, as the teen locked his door. "Especially considering how bad you look on the outside."

"Yeah, blame Shizune-neechan." He replied. "Apparently living on ramen isn't the right way to support a growing body. Who would have believed it!?"

He wasn't really lying – that was what Shizune had said. He just neglected to mention the fact that it wasn't _his _body that the medic-apprentice was talking about.

Their journey concluded in relative silence, with the only exception being when Pakkun requested to sit on top of Naruto's backpack, complaining that his paws ached. He was rather thankful for that, actually – even if the henge worked to hide his bloated belly, it was still there, and the weight pressing down behind him at least gave him a good reason to waddle around.

"That'll do for today." Kakashi called jovially as team seven put down their baskets. Their missions today had consisted of catching Tora – in which Naruto had fortunately been allowed a communicative role - and then collecting rubbish from the local park. "I have a little work to do, so head off for lunch and I'll see you at training ground seven in an hour."

"Um, Sensei? I have to meet up with the hokage soon." Sakura piped up. "It's probably going to last all afternoon."

After her aunt had been injured last month, Sakura had gone to visit at the hospital and witnessed Tsunade and Shizune working their magic on a sick patient. Through one way or another, she'd somehow managed to convince them to let her train as another apprentice, and now took semi-weekly lessons with them.

"Sure, go ahead. I'll see you tomorrow."

As Kakashi disappeared in a body-flicker, Sasuke slinked away and Sakura followed after him in true fangirl fashion, Naruto was left alone with Pakkun, who seemed to have taken a liking to the softness of his hair.

Since he already had his food, he decided to head straight to training ground seven so that he could eat his food without having to constantly check the time. The teen had a feeling that Kakashi would be extra late to make up for his earliness that morning, so he made sure to settle down in a comfortable position with his back against a tree.

He ate his food with little appetite, only really forcing it down because it was supposed to be good for the baby. Despite not really caring whether or not the baby lived, Naruto knew that he would have to carry it to term in order to survive himself, so he found himself taking care of his own body for that reason.

He would have imagined it would have been a pretty interesting sight for anyone passing by, as they would have seen a teenager slouching against a tree, occasionally feeding pieces of food to his hair. But as a matter of fact, Pakkun had somehow managed to nestle himself inside so that he was barely visible, and happily snaffled up the food he was offered.

In this position, Naruto was pleased to find that the perpetual backache he'd been dealing with was significantly better. After such a poor sleep the night before, it was inevitable that he eventually found his eyes growing heavy, and he allowed himself to fall into a light snooze.

* * *

"_Call my name."_

The voice sounded out in the darkness, startling him.

"_I want to hear you screaming out my name…"_

It came from behind him, whispering into his ear. But when he turned, there was no one.

"…_as we come." _

The darkness suddenly receded, and Naruto found himself in a forest. He could see himself being thrown around, but he could not will his body to move. A face suddenly appeared in his vision, and he let out a scream as he recognised those terrible sharingan eyes.

But the scream did not come.

Suddenly the scene changed, and he was on his knees. A sharp jolt of pain swirled around his abdomen as the familiar face appeared behind him. He could see the way the man's arm snaked underneath him, the way his other hand held on to his shoulder. He could see the way the man's hips slammed against his own with uncontested force.

But he felt nothing.

"_Call my name, Naruto."_

The word was on his tongue. It left a bitter taste that he just couldn't seem to spit out.

"No!"

Strong fingers gripped both shoulders now. He could feel them this time.

"I won't bow to you!"

"_Call my name." _

The urge was stronger now. He wanted – no, _needed _to obey. If he obeyed, it would end. If he obeyed, surely the man would leave.

"_You're going to have to do better than that." _

It was infuriating, being trapped. He was watching the scene unfold through his own eyes, but the actions he took were not his own.

He could feel his lips forming the word. He could feel it bringing him to salvation.

All he needed to do… was let go.

Naruto's eyes flew open, the word exploding forth like an exploding tag. He could see the man crouching before him, hands on his shoulders. He was speaking, but nothing could be heard. There was an expression there…. Concern?

No. These eyes weren't sharingan. That face wasn't his.

_Sasuke._

* * *

"What the hell did you just say, dobe?"

Naruto blinked slowly, willing his brain to focus. The look of concern he'd been sure he saw had changed, moulded into something much less forgiving.

"Sorry." He tried to shrug him off. "I just had a bad dream."

But Sasuke would not accept that answer. In fact it seemed to make him seem angrier.

"Why the fuck did you just shout my brother's name?" He yelled.

Naruto's heart skipped a beat as everything finally clicked into place. He'd had a nightmare. He'd dreamed about _him._ And then he'd shouted that word as he awoke.

_Itachi._

"Sasuke, I…" He began, but immediately trailed off. What could he say? What plausible excuse could Naruto have for this?

But before he could decide on what to say next, Sasuke's eyes suddenly glowed crimson, and Naruto found himself being sucked into what he assumed was a genjutsu.

As his vision returned, Naruto found himself standing next to Sasuke. Before them was what looked like a giant brain, with multitudes of scrolls and other strange-looking things floating through it. Turning around, he spotted what looked like a TV screen, where little snippets were being shown, like a slideshow.

The inside of a snake. Sakura's pink hair. A tanuki made of sand. A barrier of purple fire. The old man's grave.

With a start, Naruto realised that he was viewing his own memories. Was Sasuke seeing this too?

All of a sudden the TV screen stopped, focusing on a certain image. Itachi. Naruto could see his teammate's fist clenching, fingernails drawing blood as the TV continued… and a horribly familiar scene began to play.

_"I'm about to come." He grunted in Naruto's ear, squeezing his bulging member, effectively preventing him from reaching his own climax. His soft voice had become husky and deep. "call my name, Naruto. I want to hear you screaming out my name as we come."_

A sense of panic began to take him as the memories returned, and he ran over to Sasuke. He grasped his arm, wanting nothing more than for this horrible experience to end. The Uchiha turned to him, sharingan still blazing his fury, but the scene around them faded away as his concentration waned.

Naruto suddenly found himself pinned to the tree by his neck.

"I can't believe you." Sasuke growled. "I confided in you about my brother. Back then when we were fighting Haku, I actually considered that we could be friends."

The blond could see tears welling up in Sasuke's eyes. The hand wrapped around his neck began to squeeze tighter as he used his other hand to pull down the collar of Naruto's t-shirt, exposing the bite mark that Itachi had given him.

"And you _fucked _him."

He tried to protest, tried to explain that he had no choice. But still the Uchiha squeezed.

"I let myself believe that I had a reason to stay and fight for Konoha. A reason to refuse Orochimaru's offer." Sasuke continued, his eyes taking on a manic look to them. "But I see now that I was wrong. You're just like the rest of them."

Black spots began forming in Naruto's vision, instilling a terrible fear within him. Was he going to die here?

Before his very eyes, Sasuke's sharingan began to change, morphing into an unfamiliar pattern.

"You know what?" He said, his voice eerily calm. "You're not even worth killing."

All of a sudden Naruto fell to the ground, delicious air making its way back into his lungs. Through watery eyes the teen could see his teammate walking away from him.

"I didn't want to!" He yelled at the retreating Uchiha, in a last ditch attempt to get his attention. "Itachi forced me to do it. Please, come back! Watch the whole memory, I'll prove it to you!"

Still he walked, getting further and further away from the blond. He propped himself up on shaky legs, locking his knees as he tried to stumble towards Sasuke. But all too soon he disappeared into the trees.

"Sasuke, please, come back! Please- Agh!"

Naruto fell to the ground once more as a wave of pain coursed its way through him. His whole body tensed up, involuntarily reacting to a single command.

_Push_.

"No…" He cried, pleading to the cloudy sky above him. A burst of smoke signalled that his carefully-maintained henge had finally vanished.

"Nonononono, it's too soon! It's far too- Ungh!"

Another wave of pain, another tremendous push. There was no doubting what this was.

A rustling alerted him to the treeline, where a concerned-looking Pakkun emerged. He'd clearly left to go and do his business.

"Pakkun!" He yelled. "Find someone – _anyone!" _

"What's happening?"

"Look, this is a little hard to believe – Ughh – but I'm going into labour."

"That's… not hard to believe at all, actually. I wondered why you had such a strange smell to you."

"JUST _GO!"_

The pug yelped at the snappy response, but quickly shrugged it off and ran back into the trees.

This was an emergency. He was trained for emergencies. He was trained to stay calm.

Judging by this field's distance from the main village, it would take far too long for him to travel there and find a medic-nin. He could chance some of the nearby training fields, but he couldn't smell anyone close enough for that to work.

Wait. He was a summoning dog, of course he wasn't alone!

Pakkun stopped abruptly, almost tripping on the branch he'd been jumping to, and turned around. The clearing that Naruto was situated in was wide open, giving him enough space to do what he intended to.

Reverse summoning vastly differs between each species of animal. Oftentimes an animal has to have a contract with their summoner for it to happen, but lesser known is the fact that summoners can choose to create a summoning contract of their own, essentially applying a seal to themselves that can be used by their summons.

It's a technique that Pakkun's own summoner made use of, particularly for emergencies like this. The only problem is it requires a lot of space, as the summoned summoner can turn up anywhere within a ten meter radius of the summoner summoner.

Man, that was a mouthful.

The pug allowed himself the necessary space before using a sharp edge on his collar to cut into his paw. Using the blood from this wound, he slammed his paw to the ground and stretched out his chakra.

As Naruto watched on in agony, a poof of smoke appeared in the distance, clearing away to reveal-

If he'd had the capacity, Naruto would have slapped a palm to his face as he realised who Pakkun had sent to help him.

"Kakashi-sensei, I can explain…"

* * *

**Cliffhanger! :)**

**Well I didn't plan on this chapter coming across so well. I've certainly enjoyed writing it.**

**I have drawn a picture of what Naruto's child will look like. If you want to search it up and give yourself spoilers, then that's up to you. But when the image is directly relevant to the story, I'll put the link on my profile. **

**I'm intending to draw a really cool picture for next chapter, so if it's late uploading it's because I'm working on a drawing before I release it.**


	3. Chapter 3

**I changed the line break visual because it wasn't showing up properly on . Instead of ='s and –'s, it is now **_**/\/\/\/.**_

**I have three potential main pairings lined up in this story. It's probably quite obvious who those three are, so you're welcome to leave your guesses. I am currently leaning more towards one of these pairings, but honestly it's still up for debate. Let me know who you think should be the main pairing.**

_If he'd had the capacity, Naruto would have slapped a palm to his face as he realised who Pakkun had sent to help him. _

"_Kakashi-sensei, I can explain…"_

_**/\/\/\/**_

The jounin turned to face Naruto, his eye widening considerably as he took in the scene before him. Then, as if a switch had been flicked, he straightened out of his bored slouch and took on a much more professional demeanour.

"No need."

Kakashi sprinted over to the teen's backpack, which had been left by the tree when he'd fallen asleep. He snatched up a handle before immediately turning back and sprinting to his side, dropping the bag beside him as he did.

"First of all, I need to get your pants off." He explained, one hand reaching for the waistband. But the blond tried to cross his legs, blocking access as best he could.

"Believe it or not, I am trained to deal with situations like this." He sighed, reaching into the backpack for a pair of latex gloves. "So if you want this to go smoothly, I'd suggest you listen up."

Well, if he was going to have to expose himself to people, at least he could rest easy in the knowledge that it was someone he could trust.

Kakashi busied himself with removing a sizeable scroll from the rucksack, laying it out on the ground with practiced ease. Moments later the scroll was obscured in a poof of smoke, which cleared to reveal numerous items.

Lain out on the scroll was a pile of fresh towels, antiseptic cleaner, several tools such as scissors and scalpels, and a few other things that Naruto didn't recognise. But it seemed as though the jounin knew exactly what he was doing, which was a comfort.

He laid a towel on the ground below the teen and carefully removed his pants and boxers, placing them in a neat pile. Once this was done, Kakashi instructed him to spread his legs, bracing them against two kunai he'd buried into the ground, and placed a blanket over him to protect what little dignity he had left by that point.

"Pakkun, I need you to do something for me." He commanded eventually, once he'd examined the teen. "Go and find the hokage, and tell her that the fox has dropped. This baby is coming, and we don't have time to wait on backup. I will deliver it myself and bring them both to the hospital, so make sure she gets a team ready."

The pug yipped his agreement, before turning tail and sprinting away.

"Sensei, it's too soon! This baby-" Naruto tried to exclaim, but a new contraction drove the air from his lungs.

"It's perfectly normal to deliver up to three weeks before your due date."

"But-"

Yet another contraction burst forth, this one far stronger than the rest. Naruto wanted to curl up into a ball, but firm hands stopped him.

"No, I need you to stay still."

The teen could do little more than wail as the pain wracked his body.

"Make it stop, please make it stop! I can't do this, sensei!"

"You've got no choice, Naruto. I can see the head!"

A sudden flash of light startled the two of them, signalling an impending thunderstorm. This wasn't good – the last thing they needed was rain right now.

"Listen to me, Naruto." Kakashi commanded. "When the next contraction comes, I need you to push as hard as you possibly can. Even if your strength fails you, you have to keep pushing."

The teen nodded frantically, biting his lip hard enough to draw blood. He could feel the next contraction on its way, an immense pressure building up. Naruto's vision began to flash white as the pressure reached its peak, and the pain suddenly intensified a hundred times over.

He screamed. He screamed and wailed and cried until his throat was torn and raw. And all the while he was pushing harder than he had ever pushed in his life, his exclamations mixing with the incessant "Push! Push! Push!" of his sensei, and the ominous cracking of thunder. It was as though time was slowing down as the agony reached a threshold he never knew he had, and then burst through it like an angry bull.

And then… calm.

A perfect silence permeated only by the faint calling of his name. There was no pain, no pressure, nothing at all. Just delicious freedom. It was like he was weightless, suspended in time like a drop of water in an endless ocean.

His eyes offered no sight, his ears no sound. He existed… but he didn't.

Was this what death felt like?

_**/\/\/\/**_

Tsunade gazed out of the window, studying the whirling sky. Such bad weather was often considered a bad omen, so perhaps it was the cause of the restlessness she felt.

But this unease, had it not begun to manifest long before any storm was revealed?

She glanced around the room, seeing nothing to prove her superstitions, but then she paused. Her eyes were pulled to the trashcan that stood several meters away, leading her thoughts in a worrisome direction.

'_If I truly am receiving a bad omen, I should make a bet.'_

Yes, betting on a near-impossible outcome would serve as proof. She created a simple paper corkscrew plane, which was so named for the fact that its design made it fly in circles. After a few test runs to determine that it did indeed fly in circles, she prepared herself for a final throw.

'_I bet that this plane will land in that trashcan.'_

The odds of something like that happening were thousands to one. If she'd bet even a tenth of her paycheck on it, and it had won, she would have been able to live comfortably for the rest of her life just based on the payout from such a bet.

But of course, she would lose this bet just as she lost every other one. Such is the way of The Legendary Sucker.

Tsunade took a breath, dispelling the silly thoughts from her mind. There was literally no chance of the plane landing in the trashcan. None at all.

The Senju took one final breath, and let go of the plane. It swirled around in an arc, circling back around just as it had all the other times. It was meters away.

All of a sudden the wide doors to the hokage's office opened up to reveal Shizune. It brought with it a draft of wind which picked up the plane, guiding it straight in to the trashcan in the corner of the room. Tsunade froze for a second, before turning to her apprentice with a fearful gaze.

"Shizune, something bad is going to happen tonight."

The young woman grimaced at the statement as a pug walked in to the room, looking very much out of breath.

"Pakkun, tell Tsunade what you told me." She told him, to which he replied:

"Hokage-sama, the fox has dropped."

_**/\/\/\/**_

Frail cries were the first sound to register within his mind. They pulled at his thoughts, anchoring him to the reality he'd been so detached from. The lightness within him began to fade, bringing back the dull pain that served as a reminder to what had just happened. He felt empty now. Like he was missing a part of himself.

No, that wasn't right. It wasn't missing. He could sense it nearby. But his eyes would not open, his hands would not reach for the extra piece of him.

Testing his voice, he found that his throat was sore and gravelly from the previous screams, but otherwise okay.

"Sen… sei."

He could hear Kakashi beside him, reacting to his call. A wet cloth was removed from his face, and suddenly he could open his eyes once more. Blinking the dampness away, he began to look around.

At some point while he'd been unconscious, Kakashi had cleaned him up and replaced his clothing. That much was obvious from the bloodstained cloth which sat suspended in a bowl of bloody water. He was wrapped tightly in a blanket, which explained the inability to move his arms.

"Would you like to see him?" the jounin asked. "Your baby boy?"

A boy… somehow he'd expected that.

"Does he look like me?"

"Well… it's best if you see for yourself."

A part of him wanted to turn away, to pretend this boy did not exist. It would be easier that way.

'_He would be put into the orphanage. Do you really want to put somebody else through that?' _

'_It would be better than knowing the truth.'_

"Naruto?"

Ah, he'd missed something.

"Sorry, what did you say?"

Kakashi regarded him for a moment before repeating himself.

"I said… just prepare yourself for what you're about to see."

His blood seemed to turn to ice as every hair on his body stood on end. Had this forbidden jutsu caused some irreparable damage?

He wriggled around, freeing his arms from the blanked that confined him and tried his best not to think about the dull ache the movement caused. He stretched out his arms.

"Let me see him."

The jounin hesitated for a moment, then handed the bundle of blankets over.

The earth seemed to fall from underneath Naruto as he peered into the blankets, only to find the baby staring intensely back at him.

"It doesn't matter." He stated. "We will work around this."

"What do you plan to do with him?"

Naruto was surprised to find that he already knew the answer to that question, despite all of his internal wars.

"I'm going to show my son the love he deserves." He answered with a fierce determination, as he gazed at the tiny face below him. A new feeling began to swell in his chest, bringing with it a strange happiness that he didn't expect to feel while holding the child of the man who raped him. He thought about what this new revelation meant. With the baby looking like this, no doubt he would spark problems among those who saw him. They might even seek to kill him.

Protectiveness filled Naruto like a balloon, and he was forced to reign in his killing intent lest he upset his son. In that moment, he made a decision. "And if anyone tries to take him from me, _I will destroy them_."

"Hopefully it won't come to that." Kakashi remarked as he put the last of the equipment back into Naruto's backpack. "Are you ready to get going? The hokage will be waiting for us."

"…To be honest, I'm not sure I can move."

The jounin swung the backpack on to his back, tightening the straps so that it would stay in place. He looked up, noting that the thunder had grown quieter, before looking back to his student.

"I know. Hold on to him." He told Naruto, before picking him up and settling him in a bridal hold. The teen did not miss the way he winced as he did so.

"I used a lot of chakra during the reverse summoning." He stated simply as he began to jog. "I'll be fine."

As suddenly as the storm had passed, the rain that followed had finally arrived. For the time being they were well-sheltered by the leafy forest they were moving through, but no doubt they would get drenched by the time they reached the hospital.

"Come to think of it, how were you so calm throughout all that?" Naruto asked, having finally had a chance to think back.

"Before I started teaching, I spent ten years in ANBU. Surprisingly enough, midwifery is one of the first things we are trained in besides the core subjects. Oftentimes we would be hired by the daimyo to act as bodyguards for his many concubines, whom were generously paid to bear him children. So of course, since we often escorted pregnant women, learning how to tend to them was part and package of ANBU life."

"I guess that makes sense. You didn't seem surprised when Pakkun summoned you to me."

"That's because I already knew what was going on in the first place."

"What!? Who told you?"

Kakashi chuckled at that, the vibrations reverberating through his chest and into Naruto. It was kind of comforting, actually.

"Well, I must admit that your henge was great. I knew that you were hiding something, but at the time I couldn't see through it." He replied. "I suppose I could have used the sharingan, but I would have had to come up with an excuse for that and it was just too much effort."

"That still doesn't explain how you knew though."

"I'm getting to that. So one night I was struggling to sleep, so I went on a night-time stroll to clear my head. I happened to sense your chakra nearby, and it gave me the idea to drop in and check what you were hiding for myself, while you were unaware."

"You pervert!"

"What, you've only just realised that now?"

"You know how creepy you sound when you say that, sensei?"

"You know you love me for it."

"…So anyway, you realised I was pregnant. How did you know about my bag, which I hid from everyone?"

"Perhaps because I was the one who suggested that Tsunade give it to you in the first place."

[Flashback – One month ago.]

Kakashi suppressed a sigh of relief as his team FINALLY stopped bickering, at least long enough for Tsunade to dismiss them. Naruto had been particularly grumpy today, and given that he already clashed with the aloof Uchiha, there had been a great deal many arguments.

"I have to speak with the hokage in private, so you're free to go." He told the three of them. "We'll forego the other D-rank and pick it up tomorrow instead."

The man received a raised eyebrow in response to his statement, but Tsunade otherwise kept quiet as the three genin filed out of the room. It wasn't uncommon for a jounin to request a private conversation from their hokage for one reason or another, but such sentiments rarely occurred with Kakashi.

As the doors closed, the jounin looked… strange. Like there was a mild uptight-ness to him that suggested he knew more than he was letting on.

"I see Naruto has become proficient at using henge." Kakashi stated. His tone of voice told Tsunade all she needed to know.

"How did you work it out?"

"Clearly he's burdened by something. I can see it in the way his back muscles tense as he moves. The way he leans back just a little further than usual to accommodate something that should, for all intents and purposes, not exist on a male."

"But you can't see through the henge?"

"It's not like I've actively _tried _to see what he's hiding. I could easily see through if I used my sharingan, though I won't. If he wants his privacy, who am I to judge?"

"If you're not looking to pry, then why are you mentioning this?"

He hesitated for the barest of moments, likely considering his words. To the untrained eye, it seemed as though he'd just took a breath before speaking, but to someone as skilled as Tsunade it was plain as day.

"If he is in the condition I believe him to be…" He said carefully. "Then I feel it would be best for him to be prepared."

"What did you have in mind?"

"During the assignments wherein we were tasked with escorting one of the Daimyo's many concubines, we were given several equipment scrolls, the contents of which were tailored to allow us to adapt to any situation."

"I'm following…"

"One of those scrolls would make a good addition to his itinerary, especially in the event that he'd be… caught unawares one day."

So he was remaining cryptic. This was good news – if Kakashi felt that it was a good idea to remain quiet, then there was a chance that he would take it upon himself to be the silent guardian. It was a rather interesting quirk in his personality, one that Tsunade believed even he himself didn't realise he possessed.

"You really care for him, don't you?"

The remark slipped out before she could stop it. The jounin's startled expression closely mirrored her own for a moment, before they both regained control of their passive frowns.

"How could I not?" He replied cooly. "He's the last reminder I have of sensei, not to mention the fact that he's one of my cute little genin. Kid's had a hard time lately, the least I can do is keep an eye on him."

He didn't mention the fact that Naruto's ostracization reminded him of himself at that age. He didn't really need to.

"Well, I'll look into the scroll for you." The Senju told him. He nodded his thanks, then respectfully bowed his head as he turned to leave. "Oh, and Kakashi?"

"Yes, hokage-sama?"

"Thank you for looking out for him. I try to make the time, but that damn old man left me so much paperwork it's hard to get any time at all."

"Not at all. As I said, it's the least I can do."

[End flashback]

"Oh, so _that's _why you wanted to talk to her!" Naruto went to yell, but remembering the baby, instead lowered his voice. Despite their rushed and bumpy ride he'd fallen into a comfortable sleep, one tiny finger wrapped around Naruto's own.

"What did you think I was going to talk about?"

"When we got out of there, Sakura hit me and said you were probably trying to convince the hokage to get rid of us. You know, because we were arguing so much."

"Oh believe me, I wanted to do that plenty of times. But getting rid of you after I'd passed you as genin would most certainly have weighed on my reputation."

'_Not to mention I owe it to sensei to look after you.'_

"You're cold, sensei. Cold and creepy."

Another laugh brought more comforting vibrations as he realised something.

"Oh man, I've just thought…" He started. "If Pakkun hadn't been with me, I would have been all alone. Thank you for suggesting I look after him for the day."

"You only have yourself to thank, there. You made up that poor excuse; I just jumped at the chance to get some extra surveillance on you."

"Well now you know the real reason behind those names."

"I already knew the real reason. It was extremely obvious."

"In that case, did you spot the name I circled?"

"I did. It's a nice name. Suits him."

"You think so?"

The jounin slowed down as they reached the edge of the forest.

"Of course."

"Then that's his name."

The rain continued to pour down, seemingly with no intention of stopping any time soon.

"There's a waterproof bag in my left chest pocket." Kakashi explained. "Do me a favour and wrap it around him, covering his face but not touching it, and leave a gap at the top for air to flow in and out."

"You want me to put my son in a carrier bag?"

"Well, it's either that or he potentially catches a life-threatening cold the moment we step beyond these trees and get drenched."

The blond obliged, gently bringing the bag over the bundle of blankets he held. When he was comfortable, the jounin nodded and paused for a moment, preparing himself.

"It's going to be an outright sprint from here on out." He advised. "So hold on tight."

At that he launched into a moderate run, asking Naruto to pull up his headband as thick fog began to descend on them. No doubt his use of the sharingan would prove to be particularly draining, but it was better that than him falling face first.

He ran in silence for several minutes as Naruto did his best to shelter his son from the rain. The wind was at Kakashi's back, fortunately, so most of the droplets were blocked by him.

"Hey…" Naruto asked suddenly.

"Hmm?"

"Would you be his godfather?"

The jounin's steps faltered for a moment, but he soon picked up his speed again. His mouth opened and closed several times, but no words would come to him as an emotion he'd all but forgotten about surfaced within him.

"Sorry, never mind." The teen amended as he saw his sensei's expression. "your reputation would be ruined if everyone found out. I couldn't put you through that."

The statement was enough to break him out of his confusion, and an unseen smile grew on his face.

"No, I was just a little shocked is all."

"So… is that a maybe?"

_**/\/\/\/**_

Two trusted doctors and a pug stood to attention beside Shizune and Tsunade, awaiting the arrival of their latest patient. Tension lay thick in the air, made far worse by the crackling of thunder and lightning in the distance. Rain battered the ground as the wind howled, buffeting them even from where they stood in the sheltered admittance area.

"Can't you track them, Pakkun?" Tsunade asked, doing her best to keep the nerves out of her voice.

"I cannot." He replied. "The scent of a storm is unique, and it overpowers all but the strongest of smells."

"Shit! What are we supposed to do?" A nurse exclaimed worriedly.

"Ten more minutes, and we send out a search party." The Senju stated. "I want to trust in Kakashi."

A minute passed by with no show. Then another.

The thunder quietened, signalling that the storm was passing, but the rain still poured.

Three minutes. Five minutes. Nine minutes. Still no one showed.

"It's time." Tsunade commanded. "Mobilise-"

"There!" A doctor pointed into the darkness, where a hunched figure was slowly approaching their door. Fog-lights were turned on and pointed at the figure, revealing a thoroughly drenched Kakashi. A frail-looking Naruto was clasped to his chest, similarly soaked as he sheltered what looked like a carrier bag away from the rain.

As the doctors approached, he gave Tsunade a watery grin.

"How's it going, grandma?"

"What's going on? The dog said you were in labour!" She exclaimed, ignoring said dog's remarks of "I'm a pug!"

"Well… yeah… about that…"

The doctors swarmed them, trying to pry the teen from Kakashi's arms. But the jounin, panting and exhausted from the chakra exhaustion that was setting in, refused to let him go. They were forced to lead him directly to the hospital room, where he took it upon himself to place Naruto down and help to change him into a hospital gown.

"Let me introduce you to my family." He grinned, holding on to his carrier bag even while being stripped down. "Tsunade, meet Haru. He's my son, and mister overprotective here is his Godfather."

Tsunade held her arms out for Haru, a look of immense confusion clear on her face. When Naruto hesitated to hand him over, she suppressed a groan.

"How am I supposed to check him over when you're grabbing on to him like that?"

"It's just… well…" He wasn't sure what to say. Kakashi, having finished what he was doing, chose to lean in and whisper into the Senju's ear for him.

Her eyes widened, but she kept her face clear of emotion.

"Naruto, it doesn't matter to me. I trust you, and I am willing to trust Kakashi on his outlook. Please let me take him for a few moments, just so that I can make sure that he's okay. I promise I'll just be over here."

The first thing she noticed when the sleeping baby was handed to her was the curious way his eyebrows curved upwards, giving him a perpetual "puppy eyes" look. A head of hair that was slightly longer and droopier than Naruto's framed his face, its colour a combination of black and golden blond strands. The colouring was so equal that it was hard to tell whether the hair was black with golden highlights, or gold with black lowlights.

Haru seemed to have inherited Itachi's longer chin, and by the looks of it, as he grew, he would have those same diagonal marks down his cheeks. As opposed to Naruto's three whisker marks, the baby only sported two, and they seemed to be pointing a little higher than his father's did.

She gently removed him from the blankets and placed him on to a weighing scale. Eight pounds exactly.

"Through some divine miracle, Haru is slightly above average weight" She explained. "You never did tell me when he was conceived, by the way. I'd assumed you were three months gone when we spoke, but that just doesn't add up."

"It was on the day of the hokage's funeral."

A stunned silence filled the room as every person in the room ceased in their actions. Almost everyone shared the same dumbfounded expression as they did the maths.

"There's no way that baby is three months old." The statement, courtesy of Kakashi, seemed to be the same as what was on everyone else's minds. "I saw Naruto's stomach a month ago, and even then it seemed like he was seven, maybe eight months pregnant."

At that moment, the baby boy nestled in Tsunade's arms began to stir. She looked down at him, deep in thought – and nearly dropped him as he opened his eyes.

Haru's right eye was the same shade as Naruto's. A bright, crystal blue. But the Senju's attention was brought to the boy's left eye, which was a startling blood red with a slitted pupil.

"Is this… what I think it is?" She asked, to which Naruto nodded apprehensively. "Then I believe I have a theory."

She wrapped the boy up in a clean blanket, making sure that it was secure before handing him back to Naruto.

"Due to the fact that this jutsu was placed directly over your seal…" She began, glancing around the room to check for any unwanted listeners. "I think a part of the Kyuubi has merged with him."

_**/\/\/\/**_

**Yeah, I'm just gonna go and end it on another cliff-hanger because, while I am ready to keep writing, this is a nice place to stop and I couldn't think of a good place to do so for a while afterwards. Please rest assured that I will continue writing right now, just as soon as this chapter has uploaded, so you may not have long to wait for the next one.**

**Remember the "Really cool drawing"?… well I shoulda known that saying something like that would give me art block. For now you can check out my Deviantart profile for a picture of what Haru will look like as a young child as opposed to a baby. If and when I get around to that picture, I'll upload and let you know.**

**Edit - My brain is now calling me a liar. WIP progress screenshot on my DA.**

** (/)macabre-facsimile**

**The paper corkscrew plane is a (kinda) real thing. There's a simple origami-style plane that you can create, and bending the wing in a certain way makes it fly in smooth circles as opposed to directly forwards. Works 99% of the time. **

**I wrote some of this chapter while under the influence of 36 hours of pure sleep deprivation. Expect errors. I read through it again later on, but chances are I've probably missed a bit.**


	4. Chapter 4

**If you spotted the accidental duplicate paragraph in the previous chapter before I edited it out, then congratulations! You now know how my editing system works. If I start writing a paragraph that I don't like the look of, I'll start the paragraph again underneath, and rewrite it until I am happy with how it looks. This time, however, I was on such a roll that I completely forgot to delete it until I read back over it later on.**

**You may also have spotted the new fic cover if you're on ffnet, or the embedded image on AO3. This is the "really cool drawing" I was talking about – and as I predicted, it is really, really cool! In fact, it's the best drawing I've ever made so far. If you're reading this via affnet, or just want to get a better view, then head on over to my deviantart profile. There are now three uploads there, including a picture of young child Haru, a WIP of the drawing and the full image, titled "Godfather-in-training."**

**Bear with me on the AO3 upload – I've never added an image to a chapter before.**

**Lots of technical stuff in the first several paragraphs, so prepare yourselves. This is unfortunately the only way for me to fully explain the plot points you need to know. **

_**/\/\/\/**_

"I think it's best I start from the beginning." Tsunade remarked. As she spoke, she set about heating up milk for Haru. "When I was first made aware of this jutsu, I decided to look around and see what I could find. My research led me to an interesting discovery."

She handed a bottle to Naruto, showing him how to feed his son. He didn't really need any practice though, as the baby immediately began to drink without any help. It earned a chuckle from the Senju, who remarked that Haru seemed to have inherited his father's appetite.

"In the few years before the second great war, a clinical trial was conducted, where the leading doctor of the time tested the effects of a new jutsu he'd created, with the intention of improving the chances of a pregnancy being successful. There wasn't a lot of information, but from what I gathered, he lost his wife and daughter during a miscarriage and wanted to ensure that there were safer ways to bear children. The trial consisted of thirty people – ten pregnant women, ten non-pregnant women who were trying to conceive… and ten men."

"But why did he trial with men if he was catering only to women?" Kakashi asked.

"He wanted to test the passive effects of this jutsu, so he chose a target group that had no chance of getting pregnant whatsoever." She replied. The staff had resumed their work by this point, but were of course listening to the explanation as they did.

"During the first week, twenty-three of the thirty test subjects complained of severe fatigue, and five of those wanted to quit the program. But to the doctor's dismay, the sealing array he'd used made it impossible to remove once it had been created. He had specified the end of labour as a reason for the jutsu to cancel itself, but neglected to implement any exceptions to this rule. They were all trapped with the jutsu – even the men.

"By the second week, two of the pregnant women had had miscarriages, and the extreme fatigue had extended to all but one of the participants. Rigorous testing was carried out to understand the cause of these problems, and eventually the combined efforts of both a Hyuuga and an Uchiha revealed that the jutsu was sourcing the participants' own chakra in order to run, and the amount that it was draining was causing excessive chakra exhaustion. The strain that was being placed on the body by this was what caused the miscarriages.

"By the third week, nine of the pregnant women had miscarried, three of which had died alongside their baby. Six of the women who had been trying to conceive found that they were pregnant – and their fertilization dates all linked to the first time they'd had intercourse after being given the seal."

Shizune spoke up at this, a horrified expression on her face. "So he'd created a jutsu that made you extremely fertile, but cost so much chakra that the baby couldn't make it anyway."

"Yes. Mounting pressure caused the doctor to become frantic in finding a solution to the problems – or at the very least a cure. He began taking and testing blood of all remaining participants, looking for patterns that might help him to understand what was happening. Instead he discovered that one of the males had chemicals in his blood that were only ever present in pregnant females.

"He took the male in for testing, and discovered that he had been taking part in intercourse with another male partner. He was pregnant, which led the doctor to find that the jutsu didn't just protect the baby – it created a whole new, functioning reproductive system within males.

"In the end, twenty participants lost their lives to the trial. Four pregnant women, six of the women who'd been trying to conceive and all of the men. All but one of the women involved had miscarried, with the exception of those who had been unable to conceive in the first place."

"But one of them made it through?"

"She was an Uzumaki, and her abnormally high chakra levels allowed her to hang on for just long enough to give birth to a healthy boy, but she died in the process.

"After the trial ended, the doctor had lost his job, and no one else would hire him because of what happened. In the end he begged the current hokage to categorise his jutsu as forbidden, and eventually took his own life."

Naruto absorbed the information for a while, then turned a wide-eyed gaze to the hokage. "So why didn't I die?"

"Isn't it obvious?" She answered. "Your chakra levels aren't just abnormally high – they're _through the roof!_ Even if you hadn't had enough, the fact that you had the Kyuubi in you would likely have given you the boost you needed – although I don't know what would have happened to Haru if that had been the case."

"I think you're forgetting the most important thing, hokage-sama."

All eyes turned to Kakashi as he spoke up, his visible eye narrowed in thought.

"When a jinchuuriki goes into labour, the chakra that usually focuses around the bijuu's seal is diverted to protect the baby." He continued. "But when Naruto gave birth, I saw no sign of the seal weakening – in fact it seemed to be completely dormant. I believe that while Naruto's body was focusing its chakra on the birth, the jutsu drained a part of the Kyuubi from the seal and implanted it into Haru."

Tsunade inwardly cursed her ignorance – she'd completely forgotten about that!

"What does this mean for Haru?" Naruto asked.

"He seems to be fine enough, even at such an early birth. I think, due to your high healing rate and Uzumaki vitality, Haru grew much faster than normal. Three times as fast, in fact. So when you went into labour today, while we all thought it was far too early, it was actually probably quite late. Your due date would have been last week.

"As far as his eye goes… well, do you know how chakra paper is made?"

Always the quick thinker, Kakashi let out a gasp as he caught what she meant. But since Naruto didn't seem to know, she continued.

"There is a special kind of tree which is almost constantly fed chakra as it grows. When you use the wood from these trees to make paper, it gives it certain properties which allow you to see what your elemental affinity is by channelling chakra into it.

"In theory, the same thing can happen to lots of different objects… or people. You, Naruto, are an example of that. Your whisker marks came from being in direct contact with the Kyuubi's chakra while you grew."

"Then, my mother was a jinchuuriki?"

Kakashi glared at her, silently conveying a message.

'_He doesn't know about his parents.'_

She responded with a deep frown, before busying herself with taking the now sleeping Haru from Naruto and placing him into the baby cot next to his bed. Her actions helped her to tactfully ignore the blond's question, as he was now distracted by keeping an eye on his son.

"Since he's potentially absorbed part of a bijuu, my theory is that Haru is a natural jinchuuriki. His body is accustomed to the Kyuubi's chakra flowing within his system, to the point where it will most likely mix into his own as his own chakra coils grow."

"_Mix together!? _Then what's going to happen with him?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure. The concept of chakra-boosting a person like this has never been breached before. If I could guess, he's going to have a great control over the Kyuubi's chakra within him. You may find he has much keener senses than most his age too.

"Besides that, there's no way of knowing what might happen. You might be able to sense him from a long distance… but he might also make use of his stronger chakra whenever he gets angry. Tantrums will be fun."

"It sounds to me like Haru will make a wonderful ninja when he's older, though." Naruto mused, pride ballooning within him. "I can only imagine what he'd be like if he masters the sharingan too."

"If who masters the sharingan?"

The loud voice came from the entrance to the hospital room, where an upset-looking Sakura stood. For a moment she glanced around, frowning, before her eyes landed on Naruto. Her expression turned into an outright scowl as she marched over to him, a fist clenched and cocked back- only to be stopped as Tsunade moved to block her path. The Senju sent a look towards Shizune, and she shepherded the other two doctors from the room.

"What's going on here?" She shouted, loud enough to startle Haru. As his cries filled the air her attention was finally turned to him, and she caught sight of his face. Some kind of realisation seemed to click into place, and she pushed past Tsunade to dash towards him.

Before she could get anywhere near to Haru, Sakura found herself suddenly thrown to the floor, and a Kunai was pointed at her face. Killing intent flooded the room as Kakashi leaned over her, his face devoid of emotion.

"I don't care if you're my student…" He whispered dangerously, terrifying the girl. "If you harm my godson, I won't hesitate to slit your throat."

A hand on the jounin's shoulder broke his concentration, and he turned to see that it belonged to Naruto. There was an expression on the teen's face that he just couldn't read, but it was enough to calm him down.

Kakashi reeled in his killing intent, the tension in his shoulders slipping away as he allowed his offensive stance to drop. Interestingly enough, the intent had served to somehow calm Haru down. He straightened up from his crouch, offering a hand to Sakura. Once he'd helped her to her feet, he walked back to the corner of the room – but this time placed himself in front of the cot.

"Why are you here, Sakura? I thought you went home."

The question came from Tsunade, who was giving her a very stern look. Sakura looked up to her, seemingly remembering why she'd arrived in the first place.

"I came to find you, hokage-sama." She answered in a shaky voice. "It's about Sasuke."

"What about him?"

"He… he's joined Orochimaru."

_**/\/\/\/ **_

[Earlier that day]

Sakura let out a smile as she left the hospital, taking a moment to breathe in the cool air. Tsunade had taught her how to tend to wounds today, and had brought her around to different patients in the hospital to practice with.

She'd been able to get the techniques down fairly easily – from suturing to applying casts, each task had been easy enough to get a hang of. But it was what her sensei had told her just before her dismissal that really pleased her.

'_Well, now that you know the basics of medical care, I think it's time you started to learn iryo-ninjutsu.' _She'd stated. '_Starting from next week, we'll work at the hokage tower.'_

She supposed to others it wouldn't seem like such a big deal, but to Sakura it was the fact that Tsunade believed she was ready for it. That she believed in her.

Checking her watch, Sakura realised that she'd been dismissed earlier than usual. Early enough, in fact, that Sasuke might still be sparring with Naruto. The training field was in the same direction as Sakura's house, so she figured she might as well drop in and watch her crush totally kick Naruto's butt.

The girl was suddenly dragged from her thoughts as she spotted a familiar face down the street.

"Sasuke-kun!" She called out, but the Uchiha did not turn. As she ran to catch up with him, she noted that he had a particularly full rucksack on his back.

'_That's unusual.' _She thought. 'He _only wears that bag when we have an overnight mission'_

Sasuke turned as she finally caught up, levelling a glare that was far more intense than his usual scowl.

"Let me guess, the dobe sent you to change my mind." He spat.

"No, I haven't spoken to him since this morning. Why?"

The Uchiha's eyes flicked to the ground for a moment. "It doesn't matter."

He turned to continue walking once more, but found a hand on his arm.

"You're leaving, aren't you?"

It was more of a statement than a question, and for some reason it infuriated him.

"No, I just decided to take a shower underneath a waterfall." He replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "It's none of your business anyway. You wouldn't understand."

"Then make me understand!"

Sasuke tried to wrench his arm out of her grasp, but she held firm.

"Why?" She pleaded. "Why now? I thought you put everything with Orochimaru past you!"

"I had, until that asshole took away the last reason I had for staying in this godforsaken place."

The casual remark was laced with contempt, but it held an undertone of pain. As if he was sad about something, but angry too.

"Please, Sasuke, tell me what's going on!" Sakura begged, trying to ignore the sting of his last comment.

'_He doesn't think of me as a reason to stay.'_

Lightning flashed in the sky, illuminating his features. She realised with a start that his sharingan had activated, whirling dangerously. It was soon followed by a deafening clap of thunder, which caused her to flinch despite knowing that it was coming.

"What's going on?" Sasuke repeated. "What's going on is I am about to walk out of those gates, and nothing you say is going to stop me. So do me a favour and let go of me."

"At least tell me why you're doing this…"

"Why don't you ask Naruto who he decided to fall into bed with?"

"I- what? What's that supposed to mean?"

Her arm had slackened in her confusion, giving him enough time to snatch it away and continue walking with an indifferent snort. He barely made it three steps before his arm was caught once again.

"Look, if you're going to leave… then take me with you."

Sakura's request surprised herself almost as much as it surprised him.

"I'll come with you. We can go to Orochimaru together, just the two of us. If that's what it takes for us to be together, then-"

The Uchiha suddenly vanished, appearing behind her in an instant. She was too shocked to move as he leaned in close, whispering in her ear:

"Sakura… thank you."

A fragile glimmer of hope sparked into existence. The familiar butterflies began to flutter around in her stomach as she felt Sasuke move closer…

"But I don't swing that way."

Before she could even respond, a hand shot, hitting the back of her neck in a chopping motion. Sakura's vision faded to black as her consciousness switched off, and she fell into his waiting arms.

By the time she awoke, Sasuke was long gone.

_**/\/\/\/**_

"I came straight here when I woke up, so I could tell you." Sakura continued, tears streaming down her face. "But… but when I saw Naruto I remembered what he said, and…"

"And you thought it would be a good idea to attack him in front of two elite shinobi." Kakashi frowned.

"I'm sorry, I just…"

"Don't worry about it. It's happened now. We have bigger things to worry about." He sent Naruto an expectant gaze, noting with a start that he was staring solemnly at his bedsheets.

"I… had a nightmare." The began to explain. "About Itachi."

"Itachi? Sasuke's brother Itachi?"

"Yeah. I woke up shouting his name, and Sasuke was there. I was confused from waking up so suddenly, and he was yelling at me, asking why I said his brother's name."

The teen tugged gently on Kakashi's jacket, motioning towards Haru with his head. The jounin understood, carefully picking the baby up and handing him to his father.

"Before I could say anything he used - well, I think it was a genjutsu. But he went into my mind, and he was viewing my memories. He saw a memory…"

Tears began to well up as that horrible day flooded back to him.

"He… I…"

"It's okay, Naruto." Tsunade soothed him, already knowing what he was about to say. "Take your time."

"When the old man died, I… I went out of the village for a while. I was upset, so I s-sparred with some clones. But I wasn't fully healed from the fight with Gaara, so… I couldn't move."

Even in his emotional state, Naruto could see the way Kakashi tensed up. It was clear that he'd put the pieces together.

"I sensed Sasuke's chakra, or I thought it was Sasuke's chakra, so I called out to him… but… but it wasn't Sasuke."

"It was itachi." Kakashi stated, his one visible eye hard and cold. Naruto just nodded, glad for the input.

"I tried to move, but he held me down. And he… Itachi…"

A lump had formed in Naruto's throat, and suddenly his voice wouldn't work. The tears he'd tried to hold back spilled over as he attempted to speak, only for his words to turn into a sob. He caught sight of his sensei staring at him from the corner of his eye and, rubbing the tears from his cheeks, turned to look at him.

The jounin had a searching look in his eye, like he'd asked a question and he was waiting for an answer.

'_Do you want me to continue for you?'_

He nodded his head a fraction, blinking away new tears as he received a returning nod.

"Sakura, listen to me." Kakashi spoke up. "What you see and hear in this room is an S-class secret. If word gets out about it, believe me, you'll be in a lot of trouble."

His voice was much softer than before, but it still retained an edge to it that made Sakura immediately uneasy. She let out a noise of agreement, not really trusting her voice at that point.

"Naruto was raped by Itachi Uchiha."

The words hung heavy in the air, only adding to the tense silence as Naruto found himself flinching at the word. But Kakashi wasn't finished. He motioned to Sakura to come forwards, gently lifting Haru from Naruto's arms. The teen allowed it, knowing that he wouldn't allow any harm to come to the baby.

"This is Haru." The jounin explained, crouching down so that Sakura could see him better. It was fortunate that his eyes were closed, because he really didn't want to be dealing with that conversation right now.

Sakura looked, wide-eyed, at the tiny baby before her. She knew immediately what Kakashi was trying to show her, but the man still spoke.

"Haru is the product of a forbidden jutsu that Itachi used."

"Then, Naruto is…" Sakura gaped. Even knowing what he was about to say, it was still a shock.

"Yes. Naruto is Haru's father."

"Does… does Sasuke know?"

"No." This time it was Naruto who spoke, having composed himself. "He only saw a little bit of my memory, so he… he thought I was doing it willingly. He has no idea Haru exists."

Kakashi placed Haru back into the cot as Sakura's expression changed.

"Oh my god…" She exclaimed. "He… I can't believe this."

The girl looked up at Naruto, a sort of cold sadness in her eyes.

"_You_ were his reason to stay." She mumbled. "He wanted to stay… to be with you."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying when Sasuke saw that memory… he was heartbroken."

Naruto stared dumbfounded at his teammate as that information sunk in.

"Sasuke loves you, you idiot! And now he's gone… and it's all your fault!"

Sakura's words were like a slap to the face, but Naruto barely felt anything as the shock sank in. Sasuke… loved him? That pretentious teme, who'd held a grudge with him for years, actually had feelings for him?

"You drove Sasuke away."

Her voice was broken. Empty. All the anger had melted her away as a numbness took its place, and Sakura wanted nothing more than to lock herself away.

She turned and ran, disappearing out of the door and down the corridor. Kakashi began to give chase, but hadn't taken more than a few steps when his legs gave way, and he just about landed into a crouch. His head was spinning as all the exertion over the past few hours had finally reached a peak, and he was forced to watch as the girl disappeared around a corner.

It only took the jounin a couple of seconds to recover, but it had been enough to catch Tsunade's worried eye. She sprung into action, trying to herd him out of the room when Naruto's voice stopped her.

"No… please, can you stay?"

The Senju let out a sigh. "He's used up far too much chakra today, he needs to rest."

"Well he can rest here, right sensei?"

The jounin shrugged, not bothered where he gets to rest so long as he got there soon.

"It's fine by me, hokage-sama. I'll look after him."

She couldn't help but let out a snort at that, but motioned towards the bed anyway.

"I guarantee you'll fall asleep within ten minutes." She replied. "It'd be more like Naruto looking after you."

"We'll see." Kakashi shrugged again, removing his weapons pouch and jacket and squeezing in next to Naruto. Being a maternity bed, it was slightly wider than most, and it was actually quite a comfortable fit so long as neither of them tried to move around too much.

As the jounin settled himself, Naruto took it upon himself to lay his head on the older man's chest. This way, he reasoned, Kakashi would get more pillow space and be more comfortable.

"This seems familiar." He remarked with a smirk.

The slow beating of his sensei's heart was hypnotizing, drawing him into a daze. Even despite the emotional day, Naruto couldn't help but smile. He had a family now, and that was enough for him.

He was vaguely aware of the way Kakashi's arm pulled him close as he drifted off to sleep.

_**/\/\/\/**_

**I've decided: The possible main pairings for this fic are now down to 2. Feel free to guess or vote. Though, I don't know why I'm even suggesting you guess – it's pretty damn clear who those two pairings are.**

**Edit: Ope, I did the edit-and-forget thing again.**

**I like reviews. Reviews give me motivation for more chapters. They also help me to know what I need to improve. **

**Please feed me with delicious reviews and comments :3**


	5. Chapter 5

**The genre on ffnet has been changed to tragedy/romance. I hadn't anticipated it being a romance fic, nor did I ever intend to write a fluffy romance fic like this is turning into. But that's just how it is, and I'm perfectly happy to roll with it. **

**A certain recent response has totally hit the nail on the head in terms of my thought patterns regarding this fic. Like, pretty much everything I considered for the future of this story was all summed up in this one response. I won't tell you which response, though – that would be spoiling. **

**I want to make a pairing decision by the start of the next chapter, if that's possible, so that I can start planning for those future chapters. It's not a necessity but I'm hoping to make a solid choice soon – so if you have an opinion on this topic, don't be afraid to speak out. Two whole people spotted the poll on my profile, so good job there. Good luck to anyone who decides to vote now that I've revealed its existence ;) **

**Poll won't be a definite yes/no though. Not unless it's an overwhelming response.**

_**/\/\/\/**_

He had no clue what time it was, but then again, it wasn't like he cared. This was Naruto's first comfortable sleep in several months, and he was determined to make it last for as long as he could.

Towards the final few weeks, no amount of tossing and turning had helped him to find a good position. Every way he lay would give him a backache, or a stomach-ache, or weigh heavy on his bladder. And that was before he even considered the sickness. But now… he was free.

A cool hand was placed on the teen's forehead, slowly pulling him out of his blissful state. Naruto let out an involuntary groan at the unexpected awakening, attempting to shake the hand off as he did. The owner of said hand let out a gentle chuckle at his antics, but eventually let go.

"Good morning, sleepyhead." The person mumbled; their voice feminine and gentle. "You seem a little flushed, so I'm just taking a couple of observations."

The hand returned, this time pressing two fingers to his wrist. It was clear by this point that Naruto wouldn't be getting back to sleep, so he opened his eyes slowly, blinking at the sunlight streaming through the nearby window.

Shizune stood at his bedside, now writing something down on a clipboard. There was something of a smirk on her face, which initially confused him until he realised how he was laying in the bed.

Kakashi seemingly hadn't moved all throughout the night, still on his back with his right arm wrapped around the blond's torso. The only difference was that he'd for some reason pulled the other side of his hitai-ate down to cover his eye, seemingly using it as a sleeping mask.

Naruto, on the other hand, had snuggled closer to his sensei, one arm now wrapped around his stomach and resting on the other side of the bed. His right leg, much to his embarrassment, was wrapped around Kakashi's own right leg, essentially locking him in place.

He quickly but carefully extracted his leg from between his sensei's, but made no effort to move from his place resting with his ear against the jounin's chest. The steady heartbeat and slow rise and fall was far too nice to give up.

"Don't even say it." Naruto warned, eager to change the subject before it could be verbalised. "How's Haru? Has he cried much?"

Shizune smirked once more at that.

"According to the night-watch, he did cry once in the night." She stated. "The head nurse came in to soothe him, but by the time she'd gotten there Kakashi had instinctively reached over to him, coated his hand in chakra and used it to calm Haru down. All without even opening his eyes. Apparently after that he put his headband down, shifted a little bit to and went straight back to sleep."

"Wow… I guess I was right in making him Haru's godfather, after all."

The apprentice had finished all of her observations on Naruto apparently happy with his progress, and turned to the still sleeping Kakashi to check his pulse.

"So, why _did _you pick him?"

"Because… well, he's _sensei_. He's always been looking out for me; I've only really realised that now. Every time I've done something wrong, or landed myself in trouble… Kakashi's been there to help me out. He's like a guardian angel." Naruto rambled. "Well, I guess Iruka is like that too, but it's different with him. Iruka's like a brother, or maybe a father. But with sensei it's like… he understands me. Most of the time I can just, I dunno, stare at him and he knows what I'm asking for. It's kinda creepy actually."

"Hmm, I prefer the term 'observant'."

The voice came from directly underneath Naruto, startling him enough that he shot out of the bed, nearly toppling himself over as he overbalanced and ended up leaning on a nearby counter. The jounin made good use of the extra bed space by stretching out, relishing as his back and shoulder let out a pop, then lazily pulled up his hitai-ate so that his left eye was no longer covered.

"Having said that, it's all down to you there. You're far too easy to read."

The teen straightened up, glancing between Kakashi and a giggling Shizune with a growing blush.

"Uhm, how long were you awake?" He asked tentatively.

"I think a better question would be how long I _wasn't_ awake." The jounin replied, clearly amused. But his hidden smile soon dropped as his mind turned to the tatters that remained of team seven.

"Any news of Sasuke?"

Naruto had been thinking the same thing, apparently.

"Once you fell asleep last night, I spoke with Pakkun for a while. He said that the heavy rain would have washed away his scent, and since we don't know which direction he could have been going it's really just hit-and-miss. The patrolling ANBU have been told to keep an eye out for him, but I wouldn't hold my breath. They've been stretched thin since the invasion, and even now our numbers are still dwindling."

The teen's face fell, but honestly he'd been expecting that sort of response.

"What about Sakura?"

"Tsunade told me she'd go and find her this morning and talk about what happened. I'm sure she'll come around."

Haru seemed to take this opportunity to wake up, tiny arms stretching out of the cot. Naruto went over to him, pulling him up into an embrace, before going to sit down on a nearby chair. But a thought crossed his mind, and he instead squished back up next to his sensei, and handed Haru over to him.

"Sensei, it's about time you properly meet your godson."

_**/\/\/\/**_

[Meanwhile]

Sakura took a deep breath as she took in the morning scene, allowing a small smile to cross her face. The hokage statues were a great place to watch the sunrise. But it didn't last for long, as the turmoil within her regained control of her thoughts.

'_Naruto has a son now.' _

This was perhaps the most surprising revelation of all. The fact that the dead last - that idiot who'd constantly hounded her for attention - had suddenly become a father, and to _Itachi Uchiha's _child no less!

Not to mention her inner personality was fuming at the fact that Naruto had lost his virginity before her, willingly or not.

No, that was taking it too far. Working at the hospital, Sakura had seen the effects of such trauma. Only yesterday, before her whole world had been tipped upside down, she had tended to the self-inflicted wounds of a teenager no younger than she was. She had been the shoulder to cry on when that teen broke down and revealed the reasons for her wounds, when she had spoken about her abusive father. It had been a sobering experience, that was for sure.

And yet… there was still something entirely different about Naruto being in the same situation. It was as though she just couldn't bring herself to believe it.

"You have a right to be angry, you know."

The voice startled her, but she didn't respond. She knew it was Tsunade, she had recognised it in her voice. The Senju walked to the railing beside her, and took in the view much as she had not a few moments earlier.

"What brought you up here, then?"

Sakura refused to meet the eyes that she could feel on her face, instead opting to look towards the horizon.

"Naruto brought Sasuke and I up here once. Said it would be the most beautiful sunrise we'd ever seen. I called him stupid for it at the time, but now I can see what he meant."

They remained quiet for a while longer, each waiting for the other to speak. Eventually Tsunade decided to speak up.

"You know it's not his fault. He didn't ask to be in this situation."

The pink haired girl nodded.

"I know. I didn't mean what I said back then… it's just that so much has happened in such a short amount of time."

"You really cared for Sasuke, didn't you?"

"I still do. I mean, when I look back now it's kind of obvious, isn't it? Naruto was the only person Sasuke ever treated as anything other than a minor inconvenience. I believed that I would grow up to bear the Uchiha name, I really did. It was everything I ever dreamed of. But now I know how stupid I was."

The blonde hummed thoughtfully for a moment, thinking through her answer.

"From a psychology standpoint, what happened is transference and projection."

She'd heard of these terms before, but hadn't really thought into them much.

"When you spoke to Sasuke, he blamed Naruto for causing him pain, and then hurt you in an unrelated way. But because of the closeness of the two situations, you found yourself merging them and believing that Naruto was the root cause of Sasuke not wanting you, in a really faint sense anyway. So when Naruto then revealed exactly what happened, the shock of that combined with the faint doubts you had caused you to come to the conclusion that Naruto was the cause of your pain."

"But he isn't. I shouldn't have said that."

"I agree. Sometimes when you're in a bad place, you tend to lash out at others. It's just how you cope with things. But there are better ways. Do you know what you need to do next?"

Sakura waited for a moment, expecting her to answer. But she remained silent, regarding the girl with a look that said she needed to work this out for herself.

"I have to apologize to Naruto for saying what I did."

"And then?"

"And then I focus on becoming a brilliant iryo-nin. While my dream was crushed yesterday, I still have ambitions. I've decided that I'm going to support Naruto, and when Sasuke comes back I'll support him too. I… It's going to take time for me to get over Sasuke. But for now Naruto is going to need someone who actually has a clue about looking after babies, and it just so happens that I'm the perfect girl for the job."

"Well spoken, Sakura." Tsunade beamed. "I was actually on my way to the hospital now, if you'd like to accompany me? I want to get a few rounds in before I'm dragged into the office for the day."

"I'd like that."

_**/\/\/\/**_

Kakashi seemed startled by the baby that had been placed into his arms. A nurse had been able to procure a little blue fluffy jumpsuit for Haru in the night, but he was still loosely bundled in a blanket as he sat in the jounin's arms.

It wasn't like he hadn't held a baby before. Hell, it wasn't like he hadn't held _Haru_ before. But tending to babies in a professional manner is entirely different to having a living, breathing human being in your arms that is there purely because his father wants him there.

Apparently the situation was amusing to Haru, as he let out an adorable little giggle and reached out towards him, mismatched eyes crinkling with joy. More out of instinct than anything, he moved his face closer to the baby, his hair falling down over his headband as he'd not yet had a chance to style it. He tried not to wince as Haru caught hold of a stray lock, tugging and pulling at it like a toy.

"Are… are newborns supposed to be this strong?" He asked, to which he received another laugh from Shizune.

"Not often, no." She replied. "But it's also not uncommon for babies born of strong parents to develop key skills at a far younger age than their peers. You should know that yourself, Kakashi-san, considering you were one of those babies."

"Unfortunately I prefer not to think about when I was a child."

No one really had an answer to that, and Naruto almost let out a sigh of relief as the door opened.

It was not Tsunade who walked, or rather tripped into the room, but a rather ditsy-looking nurse who seemed preoccupied with a clipboard,

"I wasn't aware there had been a staff change." Shizune mused.

"Oh no, me neither! I've only just got in, you see, and of course as soon as I got to the usual ward the matron told me I had been assigned to a completely different ward for the day!" She explained in a high voice, "Anyway, on to business… how are you feeling today, miss Hiro…ta...?"

The nurse stopped short as she caught sight of Naruto, his hand frozen in mid air as he'd been about to play with Haru. Fear registered on her face as she realised who she was looking at, then her eyes flickered down to the baby and she let out a gasp.

"You…" She began "It's a demon!"

The nurse turned and ran, immediately followed by a pale Shizune. But the medic could not stop her from screaming and shouting, catching the attention of several others and causing the blood to drain from both Naruto's and Kakashi's faces. The jounin was the first to recover, looking at his student with a mixture of amusement and unease.

"One of us must stink." He joked. "Because that's the second person to run from the room since last night!"

Despite the situation, despite the fact that Haru's peculiar eyes had likely just been revealed to the world, Naruto had to laugh. The baby before them seemed to pick up on the laughter, once again giggling and cooing as he finally let go of Kakashi's hair.

"Cold, creepy and bad at jokes." Naruto replied. "Your list is growing longer, sensei!"

_**/\/\/\/**_

Tsunade and Sakura exited the elevator to see a crazed-looking woman in a nurse's outfit running down the hall, screaming about demons and devil-children, followed closely by a panicking Shizune. As the woman passed the Senju caught her by the collar and yanked her to a stop, bracing her by the shoulders to prevent her from escaping.

"What the hell is going on!?" She asked. Her question was mainly aimed at Shizune, but she was huffing and panting after the chase and had to pause for a moment.

"The demon boy has made a demon child!" The hysterical woman screeched, her voice carrying far enough that a nearby waiting room full of people were able to hear. "I've just been into the maternity ward, and the horrible demon boy was in bed with Kakashi Hatake! And there was a baby! A demon baby with a demon eye! It's evil, I tell you!"

Tsunade decided that enough was enough, and dispatched the woman with a swift chop to the neck. The commotion had drawn two ANBU who'd been guarding a private room, and she handed the now unconscious woman over to them.

"She's broken the third's gag law." She explained. "I don't want her killed, but make sure she realises the consequences of her actions. While you're there, please pick up a couple more operatives and have them stationed outside of maternity ward B-27. This idiot's actions have no doubt put into motion a rumour that will have a lot of people baying for the blood of a newborn child."

The ANBU nodded crisply, not daring to question their leader, before vanishing in a flash. As they did so, Sakura turned to her sensei with a wide-eyed gaze.

"Why is she calling Naruto a demon-boy?" She asked, clearly having understood what the nurse had said. "And why does she think Haru is a demon child?"

Tsunade suppressed the urge to sigh. Just as she had thought that they could work through the problems, now a whole new issue had arisen.

'_Why the hell did I take that damn hat?'_

She decided that the best option would be to explain the situation to her directly, lest she come up with any conclusions of her own. To Sakura's credit she took the news well, stating that she'd sort of guessed something like that back at the bridge, but that she knew she could trust Naruto since everyone else does. She was a little less accommodating with the theory about Haru, fearing that it might have the effect that everyone worried would happen with Naruto. But Kakashi seemed to be prepared to put his life in front of Haru's, and for her that was enough.

As they entered the hospital room, Sakura found herself smirking at the way Kakashi was trying his best to keep his mask affixed firmly to his face, all the while trying to dissuade Haru from his current objective of pulling it off.

Naruto could have helped, but he had to admit that he was pretty curious as to what Kakashi looked like without the mask.

His eyes landed on Sakura, and for a moment she could see the sparkle in them, before it vanished and a guilty expression marred his face.

"I'm sorry about what I said, Naruto." She admitted, fidgeting slightly as she did. "I was upset about finding out Sasuke didn't want me, and I took it out on you. It's not your fault."

She was shocked to see that Naruto's face hardened as she spoke, and the guilt still deepened.

"No, you were right. It is my fault." He answered. "When he was watching my memories, I was watching them too. I didn't want to see them, so I stopped him from watching… but if he'd kept watching he might have seen that it wasn't my fault."

Tsunade and Kakashi, who had been talking, stopped as he said this and turned to the pair. The jounin was about to speak when Tsunade sent him a _look_, telling him to let it play out.

Sakura walked over and sat on the end of the bed, staring determinedly at Naruto.

"We both know what Sasuke is like." She stated. "Even if he did see that it wasn't your fault… I think he would have still left. But instead of leaving because of you, he would have left because of Itachi."

She could see his eyes widening even as they were downcast, and pressed on.

"Orochimaru promised Sasuke that he would give him power. I know it's not exactly a comfort to know that he's training under Orochimaru, but I think if he'd found out it was unwilling he would have gone straight to Itachi. At least… at least this way, he has a chance of surviving. Even if it is through evil means."

The statement was enough to convince Naruto to raise his head to look at her, though he still didn't directly meet her eye.

"It doesn't change the fact that none of this would have happened if I had just gone home and listened to the doctors' advice instead of going out training after the old man's funeral."

The remark, concerningly offhand in its delivery, was met with numerous outcries as everyone tried to contest it at once. But Kakashi cut over them, speaking directly to Naruto with unnerving clarity.

"Let me tell you something." He muttered. "Someone I know once returned from a mission as the only survivor after an ambush killed all five of his teammates. He spent weeks blaming himself for the mission, believing there was something he'd missed, or something he could have don't to save those men. It later transpired that one of the team members had double-crossed them, and had led them into the ambush in the first place. So, tell me: Would he still be to blame for his team members' deaths?"

"Of course not" Naruto replied, not seeing where this was going

"But he could have spotted the other guy's shifty behaviour. He could have noticed him distancing himself and gotten to the root cause before the problem even started."

"But he had no way of knowing."

Kakashi paused for a moment, a knowing smile hidden behind his mask. He leaned forwards so that he was whispering into Naruto's ear, pausing for one more moment for effect.

"Neither did you."

The teen's lips parted slightly as it finally clicked, and he let his saddened frown fall from his face. He'd just had the situation turned right around on him, and his answer had been exactly what Kakashi had wanted to hear. And the way it had been worded not only surprised him but made him see the situation in a whole other light.

_Looking down on it from another's perspective, everything made sense. _

"I'm glad you understand that now, Naruto. But we have a more pressing issue to talk about if that's okay?" Tsunade asked after a minute or so of silent contemplation. She received three nods, so continued.

"I'm sorry to say that that nurse decided to have her breakdown only a few meters away from a packed waiting room, and I have no doubt that most of the occupants will have heard her. From the way she worded it, I have little doubt that people are going to assume one of two things: That Naruto has possessed a child and Kakashi his helping him raise it, or that Haru is the product of both Kakashi and Naruto."

She suppressed a grin at the blush that peeked up from underneath Kakashi's mask, but chose not to comment as it really wasn't the time.

"The first thing we need to consider is that Naruto isn't going to be safe raising Haru on his own. He needs someone around, first of all, to actually show him _how _to take care of him, and besides that he's going to need all the protection that he's going to get with these rumours circulating."

"I'll do it."

Four pairs of shocked eyes turned to Sakura, who returned the stares with a determined look.

"Didn't I say just this morning that I would focus on supporting my teammates?" She asked, directing her question to Tsunade but knowing that everyone else would understand. "I'm the one that does most of the work on babysitting missions, so I know how to take care of babies, and it would be good experience if I'm going to be a medic in the future."

"You make a good point." Kakashi remarked. "But would you have the space to accommodate for both Naruto and Haru? Do you think you'd be able to afford all the costs that come with raising a baby? It's not cheap, you know, even with a childcare grant. And what about your reputation? You and your family would be attacked for associating with them, could you truly say that you'd be able to handle that?"

The girl's face fell.

"Well, do you have any better ideas?" She asked.

"As a matter of fact, I do."

A raised eyebrow on Tsunade's behalf was all he needed to continue.

"My reputation is already going to be shot with these rumours. I have a three-bedroom apartment that currently only has me residing in it, not to mention I have a lot of money saved up from when I used to take back-to-back S-ranks. The seal wards that the fourth put up in the apartment are still going strong today, so I can add the two of them to the list and they'll be as safe as can be."

If Sakura's announcement had been a surprise, Kakashi's casual statement had been absolutely jaw-dropping! Tsunade, for one, simply could not fathom the fact that _Kakashi, _the infamous, near-emotionless loner was suddenly willing to open his doors to perhaps the one person that could garner him more attention than even she as a hokage could ever hope for.

"Are… are you sure about that?"

"Of course. I'm Haru's godfather, right? It only makes sense for family to stick together."

At this, his eyes flicked not towards Haru but to Naruto, who had such a pure emotion in his eyes that it was hard to look away. To actually hear Kakashi refer to him and Haru as family… it just meant a lot.

"If you're both okay with this, I can get behind it. Honestly I was considering moving Naruto into one of the major clans, my first choice being Yamanaka, but the paperwork and the backlash would be terrible. This is the most logical solution as far as I can see."

"Then it's settled."

"Naruto, how are you feeling today? You seem to be moving around without wincing or anything."

The teen had been in a sort of happy daze, and while the statement was enough to snap him out of it Tsunade had had to repeat it a second time.

"Oh, I kinda forgot that I was supposed to be feeling pain." He replied sheepishly. "I feel great, and I think I'm all healed up… as best as I can be." A hand made its way to his shoulder, where he knew the bite scar resided, but he wasn't really as bothered by it as he used to be.

"Wonderful. You'll just need a physical check-up to make sure you're all good, then I'm happy to dispatch you into Kakashi's capable hands."

The blond blanched at the woman's wording.

"A-a _physical_ check-up!?"

_**/\/\/\/**_

**Apologies for the longer time between chapters. I've had a couple of projects that took precedence, and besides that I put aside some writing time to actually write my chapter plans out in a list. So far chapters have reached into the double digits, and I have a solid set of plot advancements at the very least up until the inevitable return of Sasuke. I wanted to add that in terms of plot, both of the pairings will have equal opportunity to make their mark, but in the end its up to whichever one is most popular. Unless… I did both :3**

**Jkjk. Unless that's something you'd actually like to see. But duo relationships like that are kinda… well, they're **_**really **_**not my thing. **

**In the plot planning, this chapter was meant to have some more information in it, but I'm sort of overrunning the boundaries of my tiredness so I gotta get rested. I'll add the extra info onto the next chapter, as well as a nice scene from Kakashi's POV. It might be a shorter chapter than most but we'll see when I get around to writing it.**

**This fic currently occupies every fibre of my being. Every waking moment I am thinking about what to write next, or what plot point should be further discussed, or generally getting the fluffy feels when I think about that scene I wrote at the end of the last chapter and the start of this one. And if I think about something else for a short period of time, when my thoughts inevitably return they do so with a little shock of happiness as I think about the fic I've created. My heart balloons with warmth and joy every time I read a new review, regardless of the content, or see that people have left kudos and favourites. Thank you, readers, for supporting me as I discover a new side of myself as a writer 3**


	6. Chapter 6

**Gonna start this chapter off with apologies, first to those who may have seen a certain comment I placed on my AO3 profile last night. I wasn't feeling myself at the time and what I said was little more than a temporary moment of weakness.**

**In the next few weeks I will be the proud owner of a digital art business, the name of which I must withhold for anonymity's sake. I'm sure you're asking, "Maca, if you can't tell us about it, why are you even mentioning it in the first place?". I would ask the same. The truth is that the prep work and the commissions I'm taking doesn't always leave too much room for thought, and as a particularly methodical writer a single chapter can take me anywhere between three and nine hours to write. So I don't have a lot of writing time basically, which I apologize for. From now on updates may be scarce, but I assure you that every piece of feedback I get really helps to boost my motivation and force through my artist's aches to get writing done. Just saying ;)**

**Oh, and while I can't give you the business name, I CAN still take commissions without disclosing it. So if you're looking for a cheap art commission, feel free to send me a PM on my MacaFac DeviantArt and we can talk there. **

**Pretty much this whole chapter is based around a whole lot of emotion and very little actual plot, with the exception of a timeskip. I've put it in here because I couldn't get all the information down in the last chapter before it got too long, so I decided to split and add an angsty inner monologue of conflicted emotions on to the end. It's all relevant to the plot, just doesn't advance it so much.**

_**/\/\/\/**_

Naruto woke far too slowly for his liking, suspicious about how well-rested he was feeling. He could hear a muffled voice coming from the direction of the kitchen though, and the familiarity served to put his unease at rest for the most part.

As he'd expected, Kakashi was already awake. He was bent over the stove, obviously cooking something if the sizzling of the pan he held was anything to go by. Haru sat in a highchair at the dining table, completely enraptured by the jounin's actions; so much so that he didn't even bother to look around when Naruto entered the room.

"Man, he sure likes you." The teen commented, staring at his sensei's back with a mixture of jealousy and awe. "If it was me doing the cooking, he'd be squirming around trying to find something to occupy him."

"Sounds like someone else I know."

Naruto scowled half-heartedly before sitting heavily at the table, rubbing his eyes. The motion attracted Haru's attention, and the boy let out a piercing squeal of excitement. Not for the first time Kakashi found himself feeling thankful that he lived in a pretty remote part of the village, particularly as the noise brought back a headache he'd been trying to stave off.

"Anyway, how the hell did you manage to get Haru up and dressed this morning without him waking me up?" The blond asked instead of offering a response.

As the jounin turned to place a bowl in front of him, Naruto spotted the heavy bags underneath his eyes. The tiny portion of Kakashi's face that was actually showing was haggard and tired, and the roughness drove a pang of guilt into his heart.

"I didn't." He replied. "He actually made rather a lot of noise about it this morning, obviously confused as to why you weren't there. But somehow you managed to sleep through it all, so I figured you needed the rest. It's around noon now."

Another pang plunged itself into Naruto, and it took rather a lot of concentration to keep it from showing on his face. So he'd just left his clearly sleep-deprived sensei to deal with everything while he took a leisurely snooze? How pathetic.

"I think you're the one that needs the rest, sensei. You look like you haven't slept in weeks."

"I'm sure I've told you before that I don't really have the luxury of just going to sleep. It's a downside of being well trained – alertness in its base form is rather hard to just turn off."

"But still, I-"

"No buts. I won't have this conversation again, okay? I chose to bring you and Haru into my life, and I still choose to keep you here now. No amount of sleep deprivation is going to stop me from taking care of my family."

A jarring warmth swelled within Naruto, and he had to take a moment to compose himself before responding once more. Such a feeling had become rather familiar as of late, and the teen wasn't totally clueless as to what it meant. Quite the opposite, in fact – since his revelation in regard to Sasuke, simple emotions like this suddenly meant so much more than just the happiness he'd originally associated with them.

"Just try to get some sleep when you can, sensei… For me? Please? I don't like it when you look so tired all the time."

Yes, over the five months he'd been living with this man, a single fact had become painfully obvious to him with every interaction they'd had. As his familiarity grew with the mysterious ninja, the more his affection grew too… and the realisation that this wasn't just friendly warmth.

He knew without a doubt that these feelings were more intimate than those between friends. Catching himself staring at the outline of his sensei's lips through the mask, craving to be close to him like they'd been in that hospital bed, that wasn't what friends did. The blond longed for Kakashi in a way he'd never felt before, in a way that told him one simple truth.

He had a crush on his sensei.

"I'm going to take Haru to the park this afternoon, actually." He continued, shaking his head as if to bring himself away from the path his thoughts were taking him to. "You can have the apartment to yourself for a couple of hours, get all the rest you need."

"Are you sure?"

As had been predicted, rumours had spread far and wide regarding Naruto and Haru, and despite the efforts that had been made to quash them, the hostility towards Naruto had stretched across to his son. Kakashi's reputation had taken a beating too, but for the most part everyone still tolerated him. No one dared step out of line when Kakashi was around at least, though whether that was out of respect or fear was yet to be revealed. Usually when Naruto took Haru out, the jounin would come along for the sake of protection.

"I'll be okay." The teen replied. "I'm going to the park that's right next to the hokage's office, so I'm sure there will be plenty of ANBU around. He'll be patched up, anyway."

Patched up, meaning that a medical eye-bandage would be placed over Haru's left eye.

Interestingly enough, Haru didn't react to the bandage when they'd first put it on him. He'd looked around with a sense of confusion for a while, it seemed, but other than that he was completely fine. Kakashi had stated that this was a highly unusual response, and so they'd spent a while testing him in different scenarios.

Covering his right eye resulted in his already-limited depth perception failing, which suggested that his left eye could perhaps see through the bandage. This theory was further strengthened when they decided to cover both of his eyes, stepping back to find him still following their movements even while he'd been blinded. It was a very interesting development to say the least, but until Haru was old enough to explain what was happening for himself, it wasn't possible to work out what was actually going on.

Kakashi or a Yamanaka could have easily looked into Haru's mind for the solution using their doujutsu and mind techniques respectively, but there were strict policies in place preventing that without very good reason. There was a high risk of such techniques causing damage to brains that were not fully developed, so as a rule no one dared to use the technique on a child unless their life would be in danger anyway.

In any case, since Haru was unaffected by the bandage, it made it much more believable to state that he'd been born blind in one eye. His actual parentage remained a steadfast secret though, and only a very select number of people knew the real truth.

Kakashi nodded hesitantly at the teen, resisting the urge to yawn. He could definitely do with catching some sleep, that was for sure. Whether or not he'd actually get that rest though, well that remained to be seen.

_**/\/\/\/**_

Naruto had forgone a stroller, not really feeling comfortable with the idea of displaying his defenceless son to everyone. In his opinion it felt like he was saying "Hey, look here! I've put a wall between my son and I so literally anyone could easily reach down and snatch him up before I could react!"

No, it was much easier for him to hold Haru in his arms, especially since he'd always be able to summon a clone if he needed to take a break.

As he walked, he could see the glares being sent his way. He had taken to carrying Haru around in a thick blanket, figuring it would be safer to keep any passers by from seeing his face while he was in a vulnerable state, and now more than ever he was glad for that. The civilians seemed to be far braver now that Kakashi wasn't around, even going so far as to roughly jostle him as they passed in the streets. At least with the thickness of the blanket, Haru barely felt the movement as he stared quietly into the sky.

Even at five months old, Haru's expression seemed to show a deep understanding of the world around him. Kakashi had once remarked that the expression had reminded him of himself, though Naruto still didn't have much of a grasp on his past so he couldn't really understand what that meant.

All he did know was that Haru seemed to be extremely intelligent, which could only spell trouble in the distant future if he decided to turn his efforts to pranking people.

The park was a large, open expanse, with a playground area on one side and an expansive field on the other; both separated by a seating area consisting of several benches and tables, and sometimes the odd fast food vendor.

Taking a seat at one of the more isolated benches, Naruto allowed his mind to wander for a while. Haru was far too young to really interact with anyone, so he continued to regard his surroundings as his father thought.

The blond had come to understand his feelings for Kakashi when Haru was around a month old. They'd finally gotten him to sleep, and instead of heading straight to bed as they usually did, they'd decided to sit around and converse for a while in the sitting room.

Conversation had started out with small talk, as it usually did. But after a while they turned to more private topics, and Kakashi eventually shared a few stories from his time in the ANBU. Nothing serious, just a few funny stories about how his colleague walked in on another colleague, or when he'd been there to deal with the clean-up after one of Naruto's particularly messy pranks.

"_You must have so many stories to tell._" He'd remarked once their conversation lulled. "_Do you talk about them a lot?" _

There had been a brief moment where Kakashi's face had hardened slightly, but the seriousness vanished almost as soon as it had appeared.

"_Nope." _He'd replied. "_You're actually the only person I've shared these stories with." _

At that moment, knowing that the jounin had trusted him with something he'd trusted no one else with… it had really meant a lot to Naruto. The casual happiness he'd usually felt during their random conversations had melted away, only to be replaced with something far stronger. A vision popped into his head, a fantasy of sorts, where his sensei had suddenly lowered his mask and pressed his lips to Naruto's. In the next moment, it was gone, and the teen was left confused beyond belief at what he'd just seen.

After excusing himself to bed not long after that, Naruto had spent the night contemplating what he'd seen and felt during that moment, and came to the conclusion that he was crushing on Kakashi. But even now, four months after that had happened, the blond still denied those feelings as best he could. Every time a fantasy popped into his head, no matter how good it felt, he would quash it with a saddened frown and turn his mind to something else.

'_He wouldn't feel that way about me.'_ He stubbornly thought to himself as he watched a group of kids not much younger than him kicking a ball to one another. '_He's just doing his duty as a sensei and as a godfather, that's all.'_

Somebody sat next to Naruto, breaking him from his thoughts. He glanced to his side with a startled expression, pulling Haru close to him, only to see a gentle smile beaming at him from behind a wide scar and a high ponytail. Iruka.

"Well I'd heard the rumours, but I wasn't sure what to think." The chuunin remarked, not a trace of ill intent in his voice. "It seems the part about you having a son is true though!"

The teen hesitated for a moment, carefully considering the options he had. He could engage in conversation with his old teacher, but that would mean explaining the whole story about Haru, or he could ignore him or feign being busy, and risk him being hurt. A tough decision.

It wasn't a tough decision, actually. Naruto knew that he could trust Iruka - after all, he'd taken a fuuma shuriken to the back just to save his life before. The blond was the container to the same bijuu that had killed Iruka's parents, and yet he'd still stood in the line of fire for him when it really mattered. No, Naruto could trust Iruka with his life, and by proxy he could also trust Iruka with Haru's life too.

"It's been a while, Iruka-sensei!" He grinned. "There's someone I'd like you to meet."

_**/\/\/\/**_

Kakashi actually let out a sigh of relief as he collapsed onto his bed, heavy eyelids drifting closed as he revelled in the silence that followed Naruto's departure.

"_Just try to get some sleep when you can, sensei… For me? Please?"_

The jounin had to let out a bitter laugh at that. Oh, the irony of that statement. If only the teen knew exactly what it was that kept him up at night.

He hadn't really been lying when he said that being well-trained resulted in being overly alert all the time, but then he'd also not told the whole truth when he'd said it either. While that had been the main cause for his sleeplessness during the first few weeks since Naruto moved in, as a shinobi he'd easily adapted to the new arrangements. Not even three weeks later he had been able to tone out the sound of Naruto's snoring as if it was any old ambient noise, and his sleep was perfectly normal.

But that had all changed when he found himself sharing stories he'd never spoken of before.

There had been suspicions beforehand, of course. Spending time around Naruto gave way to a happiness that had long been missing in his black-and-white life. After so many losses in his life, Kakashi had resigned himself to the fact that he would never really feel normal again. He'd joined the ANBU knowing full well that they would show him how to erase his emotions, even if it was only for the sake of the mission at hand. All of the hatred and sorrow was stored away with every mission he took, only appearing for long enough that he could do what needed to be done, and then it would be locked away once more.

It would all be locked away for longer and longer, until one day it just never came back. He spent his life in a constant cycle of S-rank mission after S-rank mission, returning to his home only for long enough to wash the blood from his uniform before going straight to the mission desk and taking another. Eventually he became so devoid of emotion that he was little more than a shell of his former self, only ever displaying the emotions he thought everyone wanted to see.

On the outside he was aloof, lazy and laid back. Carefree. But on the inside he was empty. It wouldn't have taken much to unlock those emotions, but what was the point when they were all negative anyway? It was easier to leave them where they were, continue fighting for the good of his village rather than for the good of his ideals. The only time he'd ever really felt anything was lust when he made it to a particularly raunchy scene of Icha Icha. But it wasn't like he could even pleasure himself during those times, as the face of his long-dead teammate and would-be crush would pop into his mind and his locked emotions would slip and crash down.

Then Naruto came along.

Naruto with his loud proclamations and his sheepish grin. Every carefully constructed wall crumbled to pieces in front of this teen, inspiring emotions Kakashi had long thought dead within him. At first it had just been a comfort to see his sensei's face again, even if it was not quite the same. But the emotions had grew.

When Naruto had asked him to be Haru's godfather, his heart had felt as though it was going to burst with joy. It had taken a lot of concentration to prevent the tears of joy from running down his face at that one moment. He resolved, right there and then, never to allow any harm to come of him, nor of Haru.

It hadn't been immediately obvious to him then, but it certainly was now. With every passing day Kakashi fell further for Naruto, tumbling head-over-heels into a happiness he wished would never end. He'd lost track of the times he'd desperately wished that he could just kiss him, that he could show the teen how he felt.

But he knew, deep within his heart, that that could never happen.

Naruto was his _student_. No familial titles would change that. His feelings were _wrong._ They were perverse and horrible and there was no way Naruto could feel that way about someone who was nearly twice his age.

It hurt Kakashi to think about that concept, but it was better than fooling himself into believing that he ever stood a chance with him. They were a generation apart, and that's how it would remain.

He'd felt similarly for Obito too, when he'd still been alive. Perhaps a little less strongly than he did for Naruto, but then there was no comparison with who he'd been then and who he was now. Obviously he was just trying to push his feelings for Obito on to Naruto because of their similarities. Not because he felt for Naruto, right?

It didn't bear thinking about, really. But then he couldn't stop himself, just like he couldn't stop the turmoil within him.

Before he'd even realised what was happening, thoughts of perversion and wrongness turned to fantasies and happy memories and Kakashi fell to sleep, his dreams filled with Naruto's face.

_**/\/\/\/**_

**It's 2am for me right now, so please don't mind how iffy the last few paragraphs get. My mind has had me stubbornly writing even when I want to go to sleep, literally just because writing fanfiction is practically an addiction and I crave the satisfaction of getting to the end of a chapter. Plus it's nice to upload a chapter and go straight to sleep, then wake up to nice reviews and comments in the morning. **

***Wink wink* **


	7. Chapter 7

**I've written and rewritten the first several paragraphs so many times now, I've lost count. I can't seem to come up with anything that sounds right, so I'm afraid for the flashback scene it's going to be choppy and not written very well. It's not something I intend to make a habit out of, but if I stick to this one scene for any longer I will burn out for sure, and it'll be a lot longer before you get this chapter. **

**Wrote a lot of this chapter in a sleep-deprived state so beware spelling or grammar errors. I know, I know, I should have slept… but when you're drastically overdue for a chapter update and the mood strikes, there's not a lot that can be done really, is there?**

_**/\/\/\/**_

The sun had begun to sink below the horizon, painting the door with a soft orange glow. Naruto smiled as he let himself into Kakashi's apartment, doing his best not to make too much noise lest he wake Haru. Sunset was always such a peaceful time of day.

The teen looked into his sensei's room as he passed by, allowing his smile to soften as he spotted the head of silver hair peeking out from underneath the covers. So he'd listened to Naruto's advice, it seemed. Naruto placed Haru into his cot with practiced ease, making sure not to jostle him too much, but even as the bandage was removed from his eye, the five-month-old slept soundly.

With everyone else asleep, it seemed that Naruto would have some time to himself for a while. In all honesty he was happy with that – it would allow him some time to reflect on his conversation with Iruka.

[flashback]

"There's someone I'd like you to meet."

Before the teacher could respond, he gently placed Haru into his arms and watched with cautious amusement as panic flickered across his face for a moment before he regained his composure. His arms wrapped around the baby instinctively as he relied on his mission experience, trying to remember how he used to do this during babysitting missions.

Oh, right. He had been the one to cook and clean, his teammates had been the ones actually taking care of the baby.

Once he was happy that he wasn't about to drop his new cargo, Iruka took a moment to send a bewildered look towards his former student.

"This is Haru." The blond stated in answer to his silent question. "He was conceived on the day of the old man's funeral."

If the teacher had noticed the way he skirted around that explanation, or the distinct sense of discomfort he felt as he said it, he didn't mention it.

"But that's… eight months ago, right?" Iruka asked. "That doesn't make sense."

The teen looked around for a moment, regarding the people around him. There were a couple of people who could be within hearing distance, and he really didn't want to take that chance. He stood up, taking Haru back as Iruka followed suit.

"Hey sensei, want to go get some ramen?"

_**/\/\/\/**_

Once they'd arrived and ordered - which had been a task in itself as Ayame had begun fawning over Haru – the two sat down and began to talk.

"Haru is five months old, now." Naruto told him. "He was born three months after he was conceived."

The scarred man frowned, clearly trying to work out how something like that could happen. He was about to ask when their food arrived, cutting off any questions he had been about to voice as they both turned to eat.

Naruto, having finished his food with record speed as usual, poured a little bit of broth into a cup and waited for it to cool, before passing it to Haru.

"He moved onto solid foods really quickly." The teen explained, spotting Iruka's confusion. "I thought I'd see if he likes ramen as much as I do. Looks like he does!"

Silence reigned for a few more moments as the teacher ate, before Naruto spoke up once more.

"My fast healing skills contributed to him being born so fast." He began. "But because of the jutsu used, he's also merged a little bit with the fox, so he grew three times as fast as he should have inside of me."

Iruka choked suddenly, having just taken a bite of his ramen when the blond had dropped that bombshell. It took several minutes for him to stop himself coughing for long enough to stare incredulously at his former student.

"You mean to say- ugh- that _you _gave birth to Haru!?" He exclaimed, voice rising several octaves before he caught himself and lowered it to a mutter. "That's just… I mean, _how!?"_

"He used a forbidden jutsu that gave me everything I needed."

Iruka sat for a while, simply absorbing the information as he finished the last of his ramen. There were so many questions running through his head that he had to take a moment to just sort through them, determining which ones he should ask first.

"So… you said he merged with the fox?" He asked, having settled on the most pressing question. "He doesn't look like it."

Naruto nodded.

"Tsunade's theory is that he's grown the same way as the trees that chakra paper comes from." He explained. "He's like a natural jinchuuriki, because his chakra coils developed while the fox's was flowing through them. Their chakra is beginning to fuse together as Haru grows, apparently. Seems like he's going to be really powerful."

"And you… you're sure he's not going to be influenced at all?"

It was an obvious question, but Iruka still felt bad about vocalising it. After all, this was Naruto's flesh and blood he was looking at, and he'd just insinuated that he might turn into a demon.

"Well this is completely new ground. Nobody knows what might happen when he grows up – he might just be completely normal. Well, his eye is a little different but other than that he's fine as far as I can see."

"He seems really alert for a five-month-old." Iruka remarked thoughtfully. "He kind of reminds me of… uhm, never mind."

The sudden halt served to catch Naruto's attention, and he raised an eyebrow.

"Reminds you of who?" He asked, but Iruka shook his head. "You know I'm not going to let this go until you tell me, right?"

"Okay, alright. Fine." The teacher groaned. "When I was younger, like _really _young, I remember visiting the Uchiha district with my parents. I think I was six at the time."

"T-the Uchihas?"

Iruka took note of the way Naruto's voice caught, but figuring it was because of the whole issue with Sasuke he let it go.

"Yes, more specifically we were visiting the clan heads. Sasuke's parents. Sasuke wasn't even born then of course, but his brother was around a year old. Have you heard of Itachi Uchiha?"

The teen didn't respond, so he continued.

"Well, even as a toddler, Itachi was really quiet and thoughtful. When he looked at you it was like there was an adult staring back at you, even when he was so tiny. I remember it really well because his mother, Mikoto was cooking and knocked a knife off the counter. It nearly went right into my shoulder, but Itachi saw and pulled me to the ground. His reflexes were so fast, no one even realised until the knife hit the floor."

The teacher turned to Naruto, only to realise with a start that the blond was staring at him, the blood having drained from his face. Even Haru seemed to have noticed the tension in his father's shoulders, as he looked to be on the verge of crying as he looked between them.

"Hey, are you okay?" He asked, panic beginning to form in the pit of his stomach. He placed a hand on the teen's shoulder, two fingers stretching to press against his neck. The chuunin's concern grew as he realised Naruto's pulse was racing. "You look like you're about to pass out."

Naruto swallowed thickly, taking a deep breath as if to dispel the sudden unease that had washed over him.

"I'm fine, don't worry." He replied weakly, receiving a deadpan stare in return. "Seriously. I was just… shocked that you said he looks like Itachi."

Iruka's eyes seemed like they were about to pop out of his head as he came to the wrong conclusion.

"Oh! Oh gosh, I'm sorry – I didn't mean for it to sound like that!" He exclaimed. "I wasn't trying to say Haru would grow up and… well, do what Itachi did. I'm sure he wouldn't be like that, I just-"

"It's okay, sensei. That's not what I meant."

In that instant, all of the apprehension about what had happened to Naruto melted away, and he suddenly felt more confident than he had in a long time. Well, confident and a little numb inside.

"It's just that… Itachi is Haru's father. Well, his other one. I didn't really have a choice at the time, if you know what I mean." The blond stated with a straight face. It was incredibly surprising to hear himself say it with so much clarity, given that only a few months ago he'd been unable to even _think_ about it. "But in a perverse way I'm almost glad it happened- wait, no. No I'm not glad. But I know that if it wasn't for what happened, I wouldn't have a family like I do now. I mean I'd still have you, and you're like a father to me or something, but I wouldn't have Kakashi or Haru. Not like now. Kakashi would probably still just be that annoyingly late guy who makes us do stupid D-ranks."

As he spoke, he observed the emotions flitting across Iruka's face. Confusion, then anger as he realised what Naruto meant. Then sadness. Then surprise and affection as the teen referred to him as a father figure. Then it morphed back into sadness as everything sunk in.

"He forced himself upon you." The chuunin muttered. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't be sorry, sensei."

That was a command, not a request.

"It's not your fault that it happened. It's no one's fault except his." He continued. "But what happened is in the past, and there's no way to change the past, right? I should know that better than everyone. But what we _can _do is make sure that this little boy gets the life he deserves."

Iruka shared a small smile with his student, his words bringing a strange sense of affection.

"That being said, I think we're going to have to start training him early if he starts utilising that chakra." The teen mused, the subject change serving to clear the darkened mood.

"You've named one of the strongest active shinobi in the whole of fire country as his godfather. I'm sure you'll be fine."

Naruto raised an eyebrow at that, not really believing him.

"For real? I thought Kakashi was just another jounin. Is he really that powerful?"

"It's not my place to tell you his story. Well, what little I know of it anyway. But I do know that in the time I've spent working at the mission desk, there have been times where that madman has taken two or three S-ranked missions in a row. No, really! He would get back, report to the hokage and immediately take another mission."

Such an admission only served to deepen the respect Naruto had for his sensei. Not that he needed it of course.

"He's super cool, isn't he!" He exclaimed happily. "Every day I learn something new."

"_You!? _Learn something new? I never thought I'd see the day!"

"Rude!"

_**/\/\/\/**_

[End Flashback]

Before he could realise what was happening, Naruto had fallen asleep. His reminiscence of the day in passing had morphed into an unexpected dream, where a tall jounin with silver hair stood with Haru in his arms, staring at the setting sun before them.

Kakashi turned to him, handing the baby over to him with a hidden smile before picking him up bridal-style with a flourish. And then they were moving. Faster, faster, until the world was little more than a blur around them. But Kakashi's eye remained trained on his cargo, watching over him with a mix of affection and happiness.

He planted a kiss onto Naruto's forehead, the feeling of cloth on skin vivid against the dull air around them. The teen closed his eyes, relishing the moment before the scene changed, and he was no longer holding Haru in his arms.

Suddenly he was laid on his back, the gentle kiss to his forehead replaced with a roaming hand removing his shirt, tracing his abs with slim fingers. Affection turned to lust as blue eyes opened to reveal a pale face, chiselled and strong, with a frame of soft black hair.

Such a face was so similar… and yet there were so many distinct differences. Sasuke loomed over him; pure _need _rolling off him in contagious waves. Naruto was helpless as those hands, those beautiful fingers so similar to Itachi's and yet so different tugged at his waistband, taking those pants oh-so-gently down and throwing them to the side, leaving him exposed in little more than boxers and a vest.

Sasuke opened his mouth, but the words that tumbled forth were not his own.

"I'm about to come, Naruto."

_Panic._

The face staring down at him vanished, the world twisting out of focus as he was flipped on to his stomach. The air seemed to leave his lungs as Naruto found himself in a horribly familiar position, but no matter how many times he tried to scream, no sound escaped his lips.

"_It's just a dream." _

He tried to lash out, clawing at the dirt, desperate to at least push the attacker away, but strong hands held his arms in place. The teen could feel Itachi convulsing above him, feel the way his hot semen filled him up, but nothing he did would remove him from the scene. A numbness began to wash over him, a horrible emptiness as Itachi pulled out of him.

A cool hand was pressed to his forehead, and Naruto bared his teeth as he tried to slap it away. He caught hold of some kind of fabric, pulling at it with a tug, but it came away easily. Still the hand persisted, and a comforting voice appeared out of nowhere.

"Come on, Naruto. You can do this." The voice soothed. "It's just a dream."

Everything around him snapped to black.

"Wake up."

Naruto's eyes flew open, revealing a room that looked very much like his own. No, scratch that – it _was _his own.

There was a damp hand pressed to his forehead. The hand was attached to an arm, and the arm…

The gasp that the teen had been able to bury in his waking moments flew forth as he took in the person before him… and his distinct lack of clothing.

The man had a good-looking torso, with bulging muscles that were just perfectly toned, which flexed with every slight movement. A damp towel was wrapped around his waist, saving the teen from getting an eyeful, but he couldn't help the way his eyes scanned up and down this body.

Naruto's breath hitched as he looked up, locking eyes with perhaps the most handsome man he'd ever seen. He ran his hand over the man's strong jaw in a sleep-fogged daze, thumb reaching out to press against the small mole that blemished the right side of his chin. There was a startled expression planted on this man's face, but Naruto found himself drawn more to the way many droplets of water ran in rivulets down his cheek, dripping from the silvery hair that nearly covered his eyes- wait.

_Silver hair._

The blond snatched his hand back as the finally woke up enough to register just who it was he was looking at.

"Ka- Kakashi?"

The startled expression melted away to be replaced with a tilted, if a little apprehensive smile. The jounin stood up, careful to ensure that the towel remained firmly around his waist, but that only served to deepen Naruto's blush as he caught himself gazing at the flexing muscles once more.

"Sorry, I was just… well I saw you asleep on the sofa so I carried you back here, and… I went for a shower but I heard you having a nightmare, so I-"

"I-it's okay, sensei." The teen cut him off, noting with mild amusement that he'd never heard Kakashi stutter before. Even from across the room he could see the pink tinge that adorned his cheeks, no doubt mirroring his own.

He moved to scratch the back of his head, only to realise he had a smaller towel grasped in his hand.

"Oh… did I…?" Naruto asked, not really needing to elaborate further as Kakashi nodded. "Ah… sorry about that."

"That's okay, just… don't tell anyone, alright?"

He flicked the towel over to his sensei, who caught it easily and fixed it back onto his face. The blond thought he caught a sigh of relief, but he couldn't be too sure.

"Of course. What time is it anyway?"

It seemed that Kakashi was much more confident with his face covered once more.

"It's just past sunrise." He replied coolly. "I'm going to get dressed and make some food, anyway. Are you hungry?"

"…Actually, I think I'm going to go for a walk… I mean, if you're okay with holding on to Haru for a few hours?" The teen rambled. "It's just that walking helps me to feel better when I've had a nightmare, ya know? It gives me time to think."

He could see his sensei's gaze soften slightly.

"That's fine, I don't have anything to do today."

The jounin turned to leave, but caught himself mid-way and looked back over his shoulder at Naruto.

"You know, if you need someone to talk to about… well, about anything really, I'm always here for you. I think you'd be surprised how good of a listener I can be."

"Thank you, I'll keep that in mind."

_**/\/\/\/**_

[Thirty minutes later]

The teen stopped abruptly, eyes moving over to a strangely empty patch of land. He'd been walking almost non-stop, so lost in his thoughts that he hadn't bothered to look where he was going until a strange glint of metal randomly caught his eye.

The patch of land was rough and overgrown, uncut grass growing between the cracks of paving stones and reaching half a meter into the sky. It provided a start contrast to its surroundings, most of which were relatively new-looking houses with pristine lawns and sturdy fences. Naruto could see the strange glint more or less in the centre of the area, and eventually his curiosity got the better of him and he decided to check it out.

He was perhaps three meters away from his strange find when he tripped over a hidden rock, promptly falling face first onto the ground with a groan. Looking back, the blond spotted what looked like the remains of a wall, little more than a few inches remaining.

'_Just what happened here?'_

As Naruto reached the source of the light, he noticed that the grass had thinned out, creating a sort of empty platform consisting of nine paving stones, with a metal emblem stuck right into the centre of them. It was circular but with lots of points, kind of like a saw blade, with a simple swirl in the middle. Naruto let out a laugh as he realised it looked sort of like the fishcakes he shared a name with. He reached down to it with the intention of seeing if it could be removed, but his movement was stopped as a splatter of blood dripped from his nose, splashing onto the stone below him.

Apparently his nose had taken the brunt of the fall.

Once more Naruto reached towards the emblem- only this time the platform he was standing on began to move! He quickly jumped away from the stones, watching in awe as they started to slide away from him, vanishing inside of some hidden compartment and revealing a simple wooden ladder leading into what looked like a basement.

Sparing only enough time to check that there was no one watching, Naruto steeled himself and began to make his way down the ladder. It only reached a few meters down, but even such a small distance still served to drastically lower the amount of light within the small room.

The first thing that caught his eye was a piece of string dangling from the ceiling. The teen pulled on it experimentally, realising with a sigh of relief that it lit a few torches.

The basement was about the same size as his bedroom back at his old apartment. A shelf lined one wall, positively stacked with books and scrolls, and on the opposite wall, the one which the ladder was leaning against, a small door was set into the stone. The door wouldn't budge though, so Naruto moved on to the desk that stood in the middle of the room. It was relatively tidy, with several inkwells and calligraphy pens set to one side and a few blank pieces of paper strewn across it in no particular order.

There was a set of three small drawers set into the desk, and Naruto checked each one in turn. The first held several bottles of ink, pens, pencils, lots of different types of paper and several yellowed tags with strange icons on them. Nothing of interest. The second drawer didn't really hold anything interesting either – there were lots of scraps of wood, metal and plastic within it, some with little squiggly lines carved into them, some with ink markings and some that were completely blank.

The third drawer caught Naruto's eye, particularly as it didn't have a handle as the other two did; but instead was embellished with another "fishcake" icon. An idea struck him and, remembering how the basement had opened in the first place, he smeared a bit of the blood from his nose on to the metal.

For a moment it didn't respond, and Naruto found himself feeling a little stupid for ever thinking it would actually work. But then, as if by magic, the drawer jumped forward slightly, providing enough room for him to pull it open.

The only thing that the drawer contained was a small plush toy which was shaped like a frog holding a toy scroll. The teen picked it up with a frown, wondering why something so simple was so well protected. The little 'scroll' had the word "chakra" set into the top and of course, given the success of his previous ideas, Naruto decided to try channelling chakra into the toy.

Almost immediately the little lid popped open, and the blond could see a real scroll nestled inside. Fishing it out with little effort, he looked it over- and almost dropped it as he spotted the wax seal that had been placed on there, with a name carved intricately into it.

His name.

Naruto unfurled the scroll with trembling hands, almost dropping it once more as he did. His heartbeat began to race as he read through it… and then read through it again. The teen's eyes slid up and down the page several times in disbelief, before he placed it back in its container and abruptly left the basement in a daze, barely even noticing how the paving stones closed behind him.

_**/\/\/\/**_

The blond walked quickly, this time knowing exactly where he was going. The frog plush was clutched tightly in his hand, almost as though he was scared that it would disappear if he let it go.

It didn't take long for Naruto to arrive at the shinobi memorial, which was fortunately empty. He had no wish to explain himself right now. The teen strode over to the stone, sitting cross-legged before it. His fingers reached out to trace a name carved into it as his other hand pulled out the scroll, reading through it once more as if expecting the words to change.

_Dear Naruto,_

_I truly hope that I am writing this scroll in vain, because if you're reading this… well, the chances are it means I'm no longer around. You see, this scroll is sort of a message to you, in case anything ever happens to me. And obviously if you're reading it, then I've written it for good reason. But I hope not._

_Ah, I'm sorry. I'm rambling a little bit. Let me start this properly._

_My name is Minato Namikaze, and I've just been given some wonderful news. My girlfriend, Kushina Uzumaki, has just told me that I'm going to be a father. More specifically, I'm going to be your father. Welcome to the family, Naruto!_

_If Kushina found me writing this, I'm sure she'd hit me upside the head and tell me to stop being morbid. But the life of a shinobi is one wrought with danger; especially when you're the hokage, and I want to be sure that I'll have a way to speak to you no matter what happens._

_The basement in which you found this scroll just so happens to be my secret training facility. Kushina and I are the only people who know about this basement, and only those with Uzumaki or Namikaze blood or chakra will ever be able to gain entrance. I've set up multiple different high-powered protection seals on this room, so that even if our whole house is destroyed, this will remain, hidden to the public eye until it is found by you._

_If you're reading this, everything here now belongs to you, including the house and the plot of land it sits on. We have also been saving up our money for years, and every single ryo that we haven't used has gone straight into a private account, which has been set up so that only you may access it, and only if you know about it. The accountant I set it up with is a trusted friend, the details of whom I have included on the reverse of this scroll._

_Now, on to the basement itself. Every jutsu I have ever created, learned or experimented with is documented on those shelves, including my most famous jutsu, the hiraishin. There are also books on how to become a seal master, and even some sealing techniques that we were able to salvage in Uzushio. Every book and scroll has been sealed so that only your chakra will open it; as has the door with you've no doubt found locked if you've inherited any of our motivation._

_Behind that door is… well actually, I'll leave that for you to discover yourself. I hope you enjoy it – consider it a present for however many special moments we've missed since our passing._

_Take care, my boy. If you're reading this scroll, know that your mom and I love you so, so much. We'll be sure to watch over you, to see you grow into the wonderful man that I'm sure you'll become. This is goodbye, with lots of love from your mom and dad._

_PS: If you happen to meet Kakashi, see if you can get a glimpse of his face. Even with the hiraishin I could never seem to catch him off-guard!_

The teen allowed himself a grin as he read it yet again. So the fourth was his father, huh… at first he was completely shocked by that revelation, but now he was absolutely elated! Minato Namikaze was a _hokage!_ All of a sudden his motivation to become hokage was suddenly so much more understandable now.

But as soon as the warmth had begun to fill his heart, it quickly vanished again.

If it was true, and his parents had been watching… how would they have felt watching what he went through?

Naruto shook his head. There was no point thinking about that now. He traced the names once more, finger running across each letter in turn.

"I'll make you both proud." He muttered to the sky. "So keep watching over me."

"Oh, how touching."

Naruto turned, startled from his thoughts by the voice. He'd been concentrating so little that he didn't even recognise who it was- until he found himself face to face with the one man he'd tried his hardest to forget about for the past eight months.

No.

No no no no no. Not again.

Naruto's mouth opened and closed multiple times as he tried to find his voice. After several attempts, he was finally able to croak out a single word, which carried terror and panic with it in a way that words rarely could.

"_Itachi." _

_**/\/\/\/**_

**I answered a comment earlier today by responding to every point and suggestion, but taking the answers and placing them all in the wrong order so a degree of guesswork would need to be involved to work out which pertained to which point. Well, to that commenter -I honestly didn't mean to write a chapter that answered almost all of your questions in one sitting! But everything just flowed together perfectly! Thank you for your suggestions though; it's made writing this chapter a whole lot easier since there have been so many ideas running through my head besides the plot plan I've already written out. **


	8. Chapter 8

**This is now the longest chapter in the whole fic. Yay!**

**If you're looking to discuss things with me, you can find me at r/narutofanfiction or more often the corresponding discord server. I've been coming to terms with the idea of having people know about my main account name, and after taking part in discussions with people in these two mentioned places, I've realised that I have been making a big deal out of keeping myself anonymous when I really didn't need to. So now you know of places that I frequent using my main account name, so feel free to see if you can find me. ;)**

_**/\/\/\/**_

_Naruto's mouth opened and closed multiple times as he tried to find his voice. After several attempts, he was finally able to croak out a single word, which carried terror and panic with it in a way that words rarely could. _

"_Itachi." _

The man's mouth quirked upwards in what might have been a smirk. He was clearly amused to see the way Naruto fumbled with the little toy frog, placing the scroll into it and dropping it onto the stone behind him.

"It's good to know that you remember my name."

Through the paralyzing fear, the teen could feel a much more powerful emotion pushing to the surface of his mind. He slowly brought himself to his feet, raising his eyes to stare Itachi down – then immediately looked back towards the ground as he remembered what effects the sharingan could have on him.

"What are you doing here?" He asked calmly, keeping his face as blank as he could manage. But he couldn't help the way he tensed up and grabbed a kunai as the Uchiha took a step forward.

"I have a better question for you, little cub." The voice was deep and steady, exactly as he remembered it. "How is it that you are standing here in front of me, looking distinctly _not _pregnant?"

Naruto gasped as he realised that it had been more or less eight months since the incident – if he'd had a normal pregnancy, he'd be ready to drop by now!

No, he mustn't let that show on his face. Much better to play the idiot, act like he had no idea. He would protect Haru to the end.

"P-pregnant!?" He exclaimed. "What the hell? I'm a guy, you idiot. Guys don't have kids!"

"Do you truly believe that such a half-assed lie would work?"

The teen's blood ran cold for a moment as he registered what Itachi said. But surely this was a bluff, right? He was just pretending to know more than he did in order to trip him up.

"It's not a lie. You saw full well that I was a guy when you took my innocence, so don't go telling me I'm lying about something so stupid!"

The man took another step forward, and Naruto settled himself into a fighting stance.

"I'm warning you, Uchiha." He spat. "If you come any closer, I'll lodge this kunai right in your throat."

From the corner of his eye he could see him stop and cock his head to the side.

"Your voice is a single octave higher than it normally is." He drawled. "It's wavering and overly expressive, even for you. Your whole face morphed from shocked to protective when I mentioned pregnancy which, combined with your body language, tells me that you know full well about the pregnancy because you're trying to protect your child."

He pulled up his shoulders as a fresh wave of anger began to course through him. Curse this arrogant bastard, thinking he can stand there making totally accurate deductions about him!

"I'm going to find out one way or the other, so why not make it easier on all of us?"

Naruto took that moment to launch at the Uchiha, creating several clones beside him as he did. They all shouted in unison as they closed in on him, only to be quickly dispatched by well-placed punches and kicks. A second wave of twenty clones popped into existence, this time taking a more strategic route as half stood back in search of blind spots, stepping in when they thought they saw one. But yet again Itachi's lightning-fast reflexes allowed him to reduce them to little more than wisps of smoke, revealing the real Naruto several paces back, staring fearfully at him.

He backed away slowly as the Uchiha advanced, clearly terrified by the turn of events. He was about to turn and run when his back hit a tree, rendering him trapped as a firm hand wrapped around his throat. He struggled for a moment, but his action was clearly futile as Itachi's other hand moved to lift up his chin- only to find Naruto grinning as he held up an explosive tag.

The Uchiha was barely able to jump back several meters when the tag exploded, causing the Naruto he'd thought to be real to vanish in smoke. It didn't take long for his sharingan eyes to pick up Naruto's retreating chakra signature. He had run in the opposite direction to the village; obviously hoping to throw him off. Stupid.

The teen's breath came in short puffs as he ran as fast as he could from his enemy. In his haste he'd not thought to check which way was the right way, and now he was just running in any old direction with the hopes that it would lead him back to the village.

A footprint in the mud caught Naruto's eye, and he paused for a moment to study it. Now that he looked around himself, he could see that the area was very familiar, and in fact he must have been going in a circle!

He gazed around, trying to work out where he was. But wherever he looked, there was nothing that he could use to discern his location – in fact, there was nothing there at all other than trees and flowers, and a set of red eyes blending into the foliage…

'_Oh, shi-'_

The world around Naruto suddenly changed; the sky bleeding into crimson as everything around him was suddenly portrayed in a sort of inverted grayscale. His hands and legs were tightly bound to a tree, rendering him entirely helpless as Itachi appeared before him, suddenly seeming to be so much taller and more intimidating.

"This is arguably the most powerful genjutsu in the world." The Uchiha stated, face blank as he studied the teen before him. "You are powerless to stop me in this world. Where a single second passes by in the real world, I can make time last for as long as I want."

Had he the capacity, Naruto would probably have been trembling at the thought of what that would mean for him. An infinite amount of time with someone like Itachi Uchiha? He had to admit that he'd rather give up his dream of becoming hokage than let that happen.

"Fortunately for you, I have no need to stretch time so far for you."

A small glimmer of hope ballooned within him, but it was rapidly quashed as he felt something invading his mind. It was hard to explain, but it was like a thought that didn't belong to him was going through his head.

Itachi seemed to sense his confusion, as the weird feeling was suddenly retracted as he let out a smirk.

"Ah, you must be wondering what's going on. Then let me show you."

A screen appeared in front of Naruto, causing his eyes to widen as a horrible memory replayed in his mind.

_All of a sudden the TV screen stopped, focusing on a certain image. Itachi. Naruto could see his teammate's fist clenching, fingernails drawing blood as the TV continued… and a horribly familiar scene began to play. _

The foreign thought returned, prying deeper into his mind this time around. The screen remained fuzzy, but Naruto knew full well that Itachi was searching his memories. He closed his eyes, resigning himself to his fate. No doubt once the Uchiha found out about Haru, his usefulness would have come to an end. Itachi would kill him, and then he would go and find Haru and do whatever it was he was planning with him.

No, he couldn't afford to think like that. Minato and Kushina were watching him, right? He had to prove both to himself and to his parents that he would never give up. Not until his last breath.

The teen searched within himself, trying to find the chakra that he so hated to use. He could feel the familiar pull of his mindscape, but when he tried to enter it he was snapped back into reality. It was almost exactly the same as how it felt to just be dropping off to sleep, and then suddenly being woken up again.

"Nice try." Itachi chuckled lowly. "But it's not going to happen."

Not that it would have mattered, anyway – Itachi had already found the memory. Naruto could do little more than look on in dismay as the TV stuttered into focus, revealing the bright lights of Konoha's hospital.

"_There's no way that baby is three months gone." The statement, courtesy of Kakashi, seemed to be the same as what was on everyone else's minds. "I saw Naruto's stomach a month ago, and even then it seemed like he was seven, maybe eight months pregnant."_

"A guy can't get pregnant, eh?"

"If you're going to sit there and watch my memories like some kind of messed up movie then you can at least do me the courtesy of shutting the fuck up while you do it."

The angry retort only seemed to further Itachi's amusement as he moved the memories forward. It was only a few minutes later by the looks of things.

_Before she could get anywhere near to Haru, Sakura found herself suddenly thrown to the floor, and a kunai was pointed at her face. Killing intent flooded the room as Kakashi leaned over her, his face devoid of emotion. _

"_I don't care if you're my student…" He whispered dangerously, terrifying the girl. "If you harm my godson, I won't hesitate to slit your throat."_

The screen disappeared, suggesting that the Uchiha had clearly garnered all the information he needed from Naruto.

"Well since you've mostly played nice, I think it's time I explain what I'm doing here, don't you?"

"Fuck you."

"Oh believe me, you will."

Naruto couldn't stop the fearful blush that crept up his cheeks, and he chose to stay silent lest the bastard find some other words to twist around on him. All of a sudden the crimson world faded, and the teen found himself laying flat on his stomach. Itachi was casually perched atop his back, holding on to a coil of ninja wire that he'd tied around his wrists, pulling them uncomfortably behind him.

"I had been hoping today that I would be able to come and induce labour, taking the kid for myself." The Uchiha explained. "But since he's obviously under the protection of the copycat, I think this time around I'll just save myself the hassle and do it properly."

As he spoke, Itachi allowed his true intentions to cross his mind. It had been a foolproof plan really, and yet he'd failed to factor in what was considerably the most important thing.

'_I wonder how strong Sasuke has gotten now…' _He thought to himself sadly. The younger Uchiha had always remained in the center of Itachi's plans, because despite his despicable nature he truly did care for the boy he'd taken care of as a child.

If only he'd been able to hold out until Sasuke was powerful enough to challenge him for real. Perhaps if he'd been able to stave off this horrible illness, he would have been able to prevent this whole situation from taking place. But of course that plan had all gone to pot.

Itachi's intention had been to take the child and raise it to unlock the potential even he himself had never been able to reach. By his estimations, given the genes of both the Uchiha prodigy _and _the son of the yondaime, it would have taken little more than a year or two to get this child to unlock and mature the sharingan. It would only have taken a well-constructed genjutsu showing an "attacker" which turns out to be himself dying to get the kid to unlock the mangekyou.

Once the kid achieved the mangekyou, he'd swap eyes with it and they'd both have eternal mangekyou sharingans. Then he'd be able to live until his destined fight with Sasuke, and the child could continue to grow into the legend that it would undoubtably become.

But of course, Naruto had to ruin that plan.

A rush of uncharacteristic anger coursed through Itachi, and he suddenly found his reservations about the actions he'd taken melting away. This whole situation is all Naruto's own fault, after all.

Hmm. Perhaps he would take out his frustration on the teen before he got down to business. It had been eight months since the last time he'd had an opportunity to… enjoy himself after all, and he had to say that all this fighting had left him rather pent up.

"So… what, you're going to force yourself on me and come back in a few months when I'm ready to drop again?" Naruto asked, breaking him from his malevolent musings. "That's _really _going to work."

The Uchiha stood up, attaching the coils of wire to a kunai and throwing it up into a nearby tree. It looped neatly around a branch, the momentum of the wire bringing it perfectly back for Itachi to catch. He pulled the wire tight, forcing Naruto up so that he was kneeling on the ground with his arms stretched above him, back arched painfully forwards.

"Yes, it is going to work." He muttered. "What you don't seem to understand, dear boy, is that no amount of protection is going to keep me from achieving my goals. I mean look at me now – I'm an SS-ranked missing-nin, and yet I was able to just stroll right into the village without anyone even noticing. Do you really think a few ANBU are going to stop me when I was capable of destroying the strongest clan in the village with nothing but my sword?"

His response left Naruto speechless as he realised that the man was right. It wouldn't matter what he did, Itachi would find him and get his own way.

The Uchiha had taken his silence as an opportunity to untie his robe, revealing an erection that was straining to break free of its clothed confines. Naruto refused to look anywhere but at the ground as Itachi calmly lowered his pants, stepping out of them and casually kicking them to the side.

From the corner of his eye he could see him inching closer, jerking himself off as he closed the gap between them. Even just those movements brought waves of panic, the overflowing emotions fogging his brain and causing his pulse to race.

Suddenly Itachi's hand snapped forwards, grasping his chin and wrenching it up until Naruto had no choice but to look at him. The man's half-lidded eyes were surprisingly not red, but they still filled him with terror.

"If you bite me, I'll kill you right where you kneel." He drawled.

"Then who will you use for your sadistic plans?" Naruto replied, voice dripping with venom. But his statement had apparently been sensible as a glimmer of realisation sparked in the Uchiha's eye.

"Good point." He muttered. "Then how about this: If you bite me, I'll put a genjutsu on you. I wonder… would your teammate be able to fight you off if you were to force yourself on her?"

What little blood remained in Naruto's face drained away. "Y-you wouldn't…"

"Wouldn't I?" The sadistic smirk returned as Itachi began to jerk himself again off again. "I'm not above a little rape here and there, you know."

He swallowed thickly but offered no response. The hand on his chin grew painfully tight, grasping his jaw tightly and forcing his mouth open slightly. But as the man's cock began to near his face, he closed it with a snap and tried to shrug the hand off.

Itachi's other hand moved to tightly pinch the teen's nose, cutting off his oxygen. His lungs began to burn as he tried his hardest to keep his mouth shut, but eventually his body worked against him. As he gasped for air the Uchiha sensed an opportunity, widening his mouth with one hand and forcing himself into it with the other.

Naruto flailed around as the man thrust his rod down his throat, groaning as it flexed and squirmed around him. As his reflexes kicked in the blond began to wretch, the choked noise seeming to only arouse his attacker once more.

Itachi suddenly began to move, pulling himself out far enough that only the tip of his cock remained before thrusting violently back in. The sudden movement caused Naruto to yell in pain, the vibrations sending tremors of pleasure into his enemy.

The man continued to thrust into the defenceless teen, setting a similar devastating pace to the one he set last time. He placed a hand on either side of Naruto's head, grasping tightly onto his blond locks. Every time he rammed his hips forwards he would pull backwards, forcing the teen's head to crash into his hips with damaging force.

A sliver of blood had begun to flow from Naruto's nose, mixing with the tears streaming down his face, but Itachi was so lost in his passion that he couldn't find it within him to care. His movements were gradually becoming more and more frantic as he picked up in speed, each thrust bringing him closer to climax.

Naruto closed his eyes, praying for it to be over soon. He knew what was going to come, but right now even that seemed to pale in comparison to the hell that Itachi was currently putting him through. At least that gave him pleasure, perverse and wrong as that pleasure was.

All of a sudden the obstruction was removed, and sweet air flowed into his lungs once more. The teen flinched as several spurts of something hit his face, running down his cheeks and dripping onto the ground below him. Above him he could hear Itachi grunting in pleasure, and he realised just what it was that was coating every inch of his face.

The urge to vomit began to rise within him as the smell of semen hit his nose, combining with the horrible taste within his mouth. Naruto did his best to ignore it as he opened his eyes, shaking his head slightly to stop the horrible liquid from getting in them, and cast a fierce glare at the Uchiha standing over him.

To his utter horror, he caught sight of Itachi's rod hardening once more, and he suddenly remembered what was about to happen next. Fresh tears streamed down his face, carving tracks in the cum that littered it.

"P-please don't do this…" He begged, all of his previous bravado melting away. "Please, I… I can't take another one…"

The man simply laughed, pulling the teen's jacket and shirt up over his head, leaving them wrapped around his outstretched wrists. With another tug on the wire Naruto was forced into a standing position, but his legs refused to support his weight. He hung limply, entirely uncaring about the strain that was being put on his arms as his eyes became glassy and unfocused.

'_There's no escape. He's going to force me again.'_

A numbness began to creep up Naruto's body as he stared into space, dissociating as far as he could from the situation. It was as though he was an inhabitant in someone else's body, watching through their eyes but not feeling anything.

'_What's the point in bothering anymore?'_

The thought popped into his head, but it floated away before he could focus properly on it. He didn't even bother to flinch as a hand began to roam up and down his back, nails raking little red lines into his skin. Itachi caught him in a kind of backwards embrace, hands snaking towards his abdomen in what was probably supposed to be a seductive massage of sorts.

But Naruto couldn't find it within himself to care.

'_It doesn't matter what I try to do. I'm always going to fail.'_

The heat at his back vanished, the hands snatched away from him. Oh well. From the corner of his eye he could see two shapes moving around, but his eyes wouldn't focus on what or who they were. Naruto felt as though he was suspended in water, completely drained of energy… and yet he wasn't drowning. He was calm. Too calm.

The two shapes became one.

All of a sudden his bonds ceased to exist and he fell down in a boneless heap. But before he could hit the ground, a pair of arms caught him into another embrace. A face appeared before him, swimming slowly into focus.

_Sharingan._

He blinked once. Twice. A few strands of silver hair were thrust into focus, and the teen allowed himself to sigh as he realised who it was.

"Kakashi…"

His voice was raspy and painful thanks to what had just happened. The man procured a cloth from somewhere, gently wiping away the semen and blood. He was careful and methodical, more as if he was caressing Naruto than cleaning him.

"I'm so sorry, Naruto." He mumbled sadly. "I should have gotten here sooner."

His eyes slid out of focus once more, but his mind was beginning to clear. If Kakashi was here, then that must mean that Itachi was not.

"Y-you saved me from… from the jutsu though." He replied. "That's already enough."

The jounin let out a small huff which might have been a sigh, but didn't respond. A thought struck Naruto out of the blue, and he gasped and tried to sit up. Kakashi placed a gentle hand on his chest, urging him to stay where he was.

"Your wrists have been rubbed raw, Naruto." He told him. "I want you to stay still for now, at least until I can dress them."

"But… the frog…" The teen whimpered. He'd left the little plush toy on the memorial when he'd run away from Itachi, hoping to draw him away from it. It wouldn't have done any good for him to have found that scroll.

Kakashi straightened slightly, reaching back and pulling the frog from where he'd placed it in his pouch. Relief coursed through him as his eyes focused on it, and he suddenly felt a lot more conscious.

"Oh, you've got it. I'm glad." He sighed happily. "Anyway… how did you find me? I thought you were taking care of Haru."

The jounin hesitated for a moment, and Naruto couldn't help the spike of concern that began to grow within him.

"Well, about that…"

_**/\/\/\/**_

[Earlier]

Once they'd both eaten, Kakashi had decided to take Haru out for a stroll. The shock over Naruto seeing his face had finally subsided, and it felt strangely comforting to know that the teen had acted so… positively.

"Hatake."

The hokage's voice rang out across the street, and he looked up to see the Senju waving to him from the window of the hokage tower.

"Hokage-sama." He greeted.

"Come up here for a second." She continued. "Let me check the brat out while I have some free time."

The jounin raised an eyebrow but obliged, grasping Haru tightly to him and leaping up to the window. He nodded his greetings to Shizune and Sakura as he stepped through, both of whom were stood at the hokage's desk and clearly practicing something.

"You couldn't have just used the door?" Tsunade muttered, taking Haru into her arms and rocking him gently. For some reason he seemed to be rather restless today, which was pretty unusual for him.

"Well you know, if I went through the reception I would have had to deal with the receptionist." Kakashi replied. "Not to mention it's rather a lot faster to just hop up to you."

He turned to Shizune and Sakura as Tsunade took care of his godson, choosing to take an interest in what they were doing. On the desk there was a scroll laid out with a fish on top of it, and the two of them were taking turns using healing chakra on them.

"We're stimulating their organs to resuscitate them." Shizune explained when she noticed Kakashi watching. "I already know all this of course, but Tsunade-sama thought it prudent for me to practice alongside Sakura."

The jounin walked over to the scroll, casually adding some healing chakra of his own.

"I know this training technique. It's one of the few medical techniques taught to ANBU operatives." He remarked. "I was never very good myself, since the sharingan tends to mess with my control from time to time, but I knew enough."

Shizune seemed intrigued by this. "Tsunade did mention that the ANBU corps had listened to some of her suggestions there. How much training did you get?"

"Well I personally got as far as basic first aid, but I know some colleagues that excelled in the medical side of things who were given paid leave to study as full-trained medics."

He was about to continue when Sakura piped up, having finished her turn working on healing the fish.

"I didn't know you were in ANBU, sensei." She stated, turning to him curiously.

'_Why am I being so open today?' _He thought to himself in shock _'Did accidentally showing Naruto my face really have that much of an effect?' _

The jounin contemplated this revelation for a few moments, but a cleared throat on Sakura's behalf pulled him out of his thoughts as he realised she was probably waiting for an answer.

"Well-"

"Kakashi."

He might have been relieved for the sudden distraction, but there was an edge to Tsunade's voice that he really didn't like. She'd said his name with a sense of tense urgency, and coming from someone of her calibre that was enough to set numerous alarm bells ringing in his head.

"What's going on?" He asked simply, immediately straightening up and switching from 'Bored guy' to 'Alert shinobi' with dizzying speed. He walked back over to where the Senju had been weighing Haru, only to stop in his tracks as he spotted the boy's face.

There was an expression of absolute terror staring back at him, which on its own would have been enough cause for concern. Babies weren't supposed to look so fearful.

But that was nothing compared to the shock Kakashi felt when he found himself looking at a pair of _freshly awakened sharingan_.

Almost without thinking the jounin pulled up his headband. Two sharingan locked onto one as he connected his doujutsu to Haru's, bringing forth a vision.

_A dark rock, almost black in colour. A multitude of names were carved into it, several of which he recognised. The memorial stone… He'd carved a few of those names himself._

_A blur of motion, as though he was looking through someone's eyes and they'd just turned around. A familiar glimpse of sunset orange. _

_A black cloak with red clouds. Black hair and red sharingan eyes._

Kakashi turned away, a panicked look forming on his face. Before Tsunade or anyone else could say anything, he leaped straight back towards the window he'd entered through.

"Naruto's in trouble." He told the hokage. "Take care of Haru for me. I'll be back."

With that, he jumped down to the roof below and began to sprint for the memorial stone.

_**/\/\/\/**_

"When I got there I found the frog and tracked your chakra to here. But by then he'd already… you know."

Naruto didn't respond for a long while, clearly struggling to comprehend what he'd been told.

"So… you're telling me that Haru has the sharingan, and not only that but he can read and see my thoughts?" He asked eventually.

"More or less, that's what it's looking like."

"Right… I see…"

The teen's eyes glazed over once more as all the new information and emotion he'd experienced in the past hour threatened to tip him over the edge.

"Can… can we go home please?" Naruto muttered. "I need time, I need… to think."

"Of course."

The blond remained silent as Kakashi gathered him up into his arms and carried him back to the house. It wasn't a long walk from where they were situated, but it was still long enough that the silence had begun to get a little uncomfortable given everything that had happened lately.

"Do you want me to stay, or are you okay with me getting Haru? I can send a clone if you need me to." He asked simply once they'd arrived. "If you need to talk about today…"

"No, I'll be okay." Naruto answered. "I just need some time… to think."

The jounin sighed softly, but he knew that there was little point trying to argue.

"Just… talk to someone about it, please. It doesn't have to be me." His eye showed visible concern as he spoke – not that Naruto would have noticed as he was currently curled up on his bed. "Believe me, I've been in that situation where I keep bottling up all my feelings. It never helps to hide it all away."

Taken by a sudden urge, Kakashi leaned down and brought Naruto into an awkward hug. The teen remained frozen at the sudden contact, completely shocked by the fact that this was _Kakashi_ who'd just initiated a show of intimacy. But eventually he warmed into it, wrapping his arms around the man and closing his eyes for a moment.

When they finally broke the embrace, Naruto had begun to feel just a little bit better about the whole situation. He still felt like he needed a long time to think about everything, but at least he could think a little more comfortably.

"Uhm, could you pass me the frog for a second please?" The blond asked tentatively.

Kakashi immediately obliged, pulling it back from the pouch and holding it out to him. But instead of taking it, the teen simply channelled some chakra to his fingertips and used it to pop the little scroll open. He pushed the frog back towards Kakashi and turned it so that he could see the now open scroll compartment.

"I came across it during my walk." He explained. "Just read it when you get a chance, and make sure they both stay safe please."

The jounin was confused, but gave his assent nonetheless. He would retire to his room for a while to read it before he went to get Haru, he decided. At least then he could be around for a little while longer just in case Naruto wanted to talk after all.

He muttered a gentle goodbye to the blond, closing his door and making a mental note to check in on him later before settling down to read the scroll.

It was as though the man himself was speaking to him. Every word he read, he could just imagine his sensei saying it out loud. It filled him with a strange combination of affection and grief as he read and re-read every word, feeling as though he was holding a little piece of Minato right in front of him.

'_Every day my affection for him grows.' _He thought to himself, looking up to the ceiling as though expecting his teacher to appear. _'If you knew of my feelings, would you give me your blessing?' _

In that exact moment the sunshine streaming through his window was caught on the tri-pronged kunai he'd hung on his wall, projecting a flash of bright yellow light right into the jounin's eye. Kakashi allowed himself a smile as he moved out of the way of the bright light, highly amused by the irony of the situation.

'_A yellow flash, just as I asked the yellow flash himself for his blessing.' _He mused. '_Perhaps you're watching over us, after all.' _

_His eye turned to the scroll once more, and he re-read the final line._

_PS: If you happen to meet Kakashi, see if you can get a glimpse of his face. Even with the hiraishin I could never seem to catch him off-guard!_

_**/\/\/\/**_

**So Itachi isn't as much of a bad person as he seems. He's still a bad person, obviously, but at least his plans have his brother's 'disappointment' in mind.**

…**right?**

**Nope, it still just doesn't make it acceptable. But at least now you can see just why he did what he did.**

**I actually have an interesting one-shot alternate ending to the scene with Itachi, but I didn't write it here because it wouldn't work with the plot. Let's see… if I get fifteen new reviews by the time I've written the one-shot, I'll post it in a separate story upload. Does that sound fair?**

**Also you might have noticed that Itachi already knows about Naruto's heritage. That's because he was a pretty high-ranking guy back before the massacre, not to mention he was a partner of Kakashi's. It would make sense that he knows something like that.**


	9. Chapter 9

**I have a confession to make.**

**...Or, at least, I did, but the dilemma I was in has already been resolved.**

**You see, there was a part of this fic that, at the time it was planned, was going to work fine. But after seeing your passionate reviews, I just couldn't bring myself to continue the storyline as it was, because it would have been highly unsatisfactory.**

**Because of this, I've worked with a close friend of mine to change a good portion of the plans I'd created, to bring forth a story I feel you'd much prefer. Now, you readers won't see a difference, I just want to make that clear. But I thought it would be best to let you know that the plot as it once was has gone through a change, and it's thanks to your input.**

**And between you and I, this new plot line is a whole lot better anyway!**

**I'm always reading your reviews, always taking on board little tips and ideas. If there's something about this fic that you don't like, tell me. Plot holes? Let me know. I can guarantee that I'll read and consider any and all comments you leave for me, so please don't feel as though you can't give me your opinion.**

**I like opinions, regardless of whether they're positive or negative :)**

**On that note, I noticed some of you aren't fans of the explicit scenes. Would you like me to upload a clean version of this fic for those of you who'd prefer not to read the lemon?**

Chapter 9

"Morning, sensei!"

Giggles erupted from the dining table as Haru noticed his father, promptly flinging the food Kakashi had placed before him onto the floor. Naruto immediately began cleaning up the mess as the disgruntled Hatake set out yet another bowl.

"Are you sure I can't _calm _him down, Naruto?" he asked tiredly. "It would make my mornings _so _much easier."

The teen cast a mock glare at him, and the action dissolved Haru into yet another fit of laughter.

"No, Kakashi, you cannot genjutsu the baby."

Naruto sat down, idly offering a hand to Haru. He took it happily, twisting and turning it in his tiny hands with a curiosity only a toddler could muster.

"He's hardly a baby now though." Kakashi mused, handing Naruto some breakfast before sitting down with his own. "Even if he looks like it, Tsunade told me that his mental capacity is growing far faster than any baby should."

He should have been more shocked about such a revelation, but with the advancements that Haru had made lately, somehow it didn't phase him.

"So what does this mean for him, growing up?" Naruto asked. "You're better at all this thinking stuff than I am."

"He's going to struggle to make friends with people his age, at least when he enters the academy. His level of thinking will be rather more mature than those around him, so he may end up feeling quite isolated."

"Can we do anything to help that?"

"Apart from getting him acquainted with the Naras, I don't think so."

They both fell silent for a few moments, turning their attention to the food before them. Even Haru seemed to settle down.

"I read it." Kakashi remarked eventually. "I... I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner."

A sudden, unwarranted thrill of annoyance rushed through Naruto, but he lowered his head before it could show on his face

"No, it's okay. I mean, there was a law against telling me, right? You had no choice."

He was pretty frustrated about the whole thing, but none of it was Kakashi's fault. He had no right resenting his sensei for a law that the sandaime had created, regardless of whether or not he chose to follow it.

No, if there was anyone he should be angry at, it was the Kyuubi. If it wasn't for that bastard attacking the village, his mother and father would never have died. Naruto would never have had to find out about who his parents were through a damn _letter_.

He schooled his features before Kakashi could notice, and went back to his food with renewed vigour. Once he'd cleared his plate, the teen sat back and studied his son's face.

Haru was eating quietly, a frown marring his tiny face. It was a far cry from the bubbly boy he'd been moments ago.

_'My mood is affecting him.'_

The revelation brought forth a wave of guilt, which Naruto quickly forced down. If his emotions were going to take an effect on Haru's, then he would rather pretend to be happy.

He turned his mind back to the moment when he'd woken up in that hospital bed beside Kakashi. The warmth, the positivity that had surrounded him in that moment had been so powerful that even now he could feel it deep within him. Naruto took a deep breath, doing his best his best to project all those happy thoughts back towards Haru, until he could see a growing smile on his face.

That innocent grin was rather contagious, Naruto found, and soon enough he found a beaming smile of his own forming to match it.

"So, any plans today sensei?"

The jounin in question shook his head, peering at the teen curiously.

The little frog toy was perched on the counter-top, the scroll tucked safely inside. Even despite his earlier interaction with Naruto, Kakashi still caught himself glancing towards it every now and then, as if reassuring himself that the events of the day before had actually happened. The letter, Haru's sharingan, It all felt surreal. Like those dreams that were always just a little too vivid for his liking.

Naruto's change in attitude hadn't helped, either. Kakashi had witnessed his fair share of trauma, both to himself and to others, and not one of the people he knew had been able to bounce back so readily as Naruto had. It was as though he was naturally resilient to the mental strain he'd faced.

Or, he was just so used to pretending to be okay that it was second nature to him now. Kakashi really hoped that wasn't the case.

"So, sensei... I'm thinking I might go for a walk," Naruto remarked brightly. "Maybe see if I can catch Iruka-sensei on his lunch break, if I'm still walking then."

Something lurched within Kakashi, an emotion he couldn't quite place.

"Are you sure?" He asked, in a voice far more calm than he felt. "After what happened yesterday-"

"I'll be fine. It's a public place. Lots of people around," The teen cut over him. The edge to his voice, so contrary to the bright greeting he'd offered earlier, had been response enough. Naruto didn't want to talk about it.

Haru had lapsed into sombre silence, hardly making a sound as he ate. The difference in attitudes since yesterday left a heavy feeling within Kakashi's gut.

'Is all of that due to yesterday's stress, though? Is Naruto still feeling this low, deep down?'

It was definitely possible. Kakashi highly doubted that Naruto could just shrug it off like he pretended he could, even if it wasn't quite as serious as it had been before.

Naruto remained quiet, even after he finished his food. He began to head into his room to get changed, and Kakashi was left with a too-quiet toddler to keep an eye on.

"Well, Haru," He mumbled, more to himself than to the boy. "What do you want to do today?"

Haru only looked up at him, the hint of a smile curling his lips. There was no playful glint in his visible eye, though. Not today.

Ka?" The toddler gurgled, the word sounding strangely well-formed despite his age. Kakashi only gave him a returning "Ka", turning to catch sight of Naruto heading towards the door. He dashed forward, wrapping a hand around the teen's arm before he could open the door. Naruto tensed, arm twitching as though he was about to wrench it away, but stopped himself. He forced himself to relax, but Kakashi could still see the knots of pressure in his shoulders.

"What's up?" The teen asked, looking up at him. But their eyes didn't quite meet, with Naruto instead fixing his gaze on the line of his sensei's mask.

"Just... be careful out there, alright?" He asked gently. "I'm going to order out tonight, so be back by sunset, please."

The blond nodded, still not quite meeting his eye, though he caught sight of a small smile. "Ramen?"

"Ramen." Kakashi replied.

Naruto's smile widened just a little more, and then he was leaving, walking down the street with a confidence he clearly hadn't been feeling a moment before. The jounin allowed his composure to drop as soon as the door clicked shut, resting his forehead against the firm wood. Kakashi's hitai-ate clinked with the contact, but he paid it no mind.

_'I hate feeling so helpless...' _He frowned. _'I don't know what to say to him, how to make him feel better. I guess now I know how Minato felt.' _

No, that wasn't right. Minato would have known what to do in this situation. He always did.

'_Think, think... What would Minato do?'_

**_/\/\/_**

_"Good work today, Obito!" Rin beamed, patting the Uchiha on the back. Kakashi only scowled at the boy, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. A bright blush had appeared on Obito's face, no doubt because of the close contact. _

_Kakashi would have muttered something about how childish he was, but a hand on his own shoulder stopped him in his tracks. Behind him, Minato Namikaze offered him a gentle smile. _

_"Rin, Obito, we'll catch up." He told them, gesturing for Kakashi to stop. Obito looked as though he was going to respond but Rin pushed him onward, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like "Let's go get some food on the way" _

_When they were finally alone, the world seemed to flicker, and Kakashi found himself standing in front of the memorial stone. He stumbled, the hand that still gripped his shoulder preventing him from overbalancing. _

_"Damnit, sensei!" Kakashi exclaimed, "Can't you warn me when you're going to teleport?" _

_The blond only gave him a sheepish grin, turning back to the memorial stone. _

_"How are you doing?" He asked, smile dropping into a serious frown. "I know it's the anniversary today, so..." _

_"I'm fine." _

_"How fine?" _

_"Fine." _

_Minato cast him a sidelong glance, clearly expecting him to continue. He didn't. _

_The blond sighed; the sound barely audible over the light breeze that surrounded them. Kakashi knew that his sensei was disappointed with his lack of a response, but he wasn't willing to elaborate on just how fucked up his mental state was right now. _

_He didn't want to lose his job, temporarily or not. Right here, with his team, this was the only place he didn't feel alone. Even with Obito and his childish tendencies, even with the arguments and the disagreements, Team Minato was family. _

_"Sleepover." _

_The blond's voice cut through his musing. Almost startling in its seriousness. _

_"Wha-?" _

_"You're coming to my place tonight." Minato told him. "We're going to have a sleepover. You can talk about as much or as little as you want. I won't push you to do anything, and if you just want to talk about something inane, like the best way to polish a kunai, then we can do that too." _

**_/\/\/_**

Kakashi straightened, banishing the memory as best he could. He was't sure he wanted to remember how emotional he'd been on that night, spewing all his secrets to his sensei.

Having said that, Minato had brought out a bottle of sake at some point, back then. He'd woken up with one hell of a hangover, and the exact details of that night had always been rather fuzzy.

The idea struck Kakashi at the same time that Haru cried out for some attention, having probably finished eating. He walked idly into the kitchen, head filled with plans and ideas.

He would give Naruto the chance to talk on his own, just as Minato had done for him.

**_/\/\/_**

The wonderful smell of ramen reached Naruto's nose before he'd even opened the door. There was nothing like it, nothing that even came close to the delicious scent of his favourite food, and it drew him forward almost despite himself.

The low mood that had been hanging over Naruto melted away in the presence of ramen. He hadn't been able to find Iruka that afternoon, so he'd decided to head to a local training ground to run off some of his excess energy. It had helped, somewhat. But the breathlessness had only served to remind Naruto of the previous day, and he'd been forced to stop before his emotions got the better of him.

The ramen, though, that helped him to forget. Nothing could fill his mind so heartily like a steaming hot bowl of ramen.

"You're late," Kakashi mumbled from the kitchen, where he was opening takeout packages and distributing the food within.

Naruto scoffed, flopping down onto the sofa. "You're one to talk, considering how long you make us wait for missions."

"Hmm."

As the teen reclined in his seat, he couldn't help but notice how quiet the house was. It was a rarity when one had a five month old in residence.

"No Haru?" Naruto asked. His voice was quiet, lest he unknowingly wake his sleeping son, but he knew that Kakashi would hear it nonetheless.

"Tsunade offered to take care of him for the night." The jounin replied, entering the room with two bowls. "We decided it would be best for the two of us to talk, without any distractions."

Aah, now the ramen made sense. Naruto would have been annoyed, were he not so busy stuffing his face.

"Have you ever had alcohol?"

The question caught Naruto off guard, and he almost choked on his mouthful of food. He somehow managed to keep it all down, taking a moment to chew and swallow before answering.

"I stole a glass of Old man Sandaime's sake once, when he wasn't paying attention. I don't really remember what happened after that though, I was really young." He replied. "Anyway, why'd you ask?"

Kakashi had a hand over the arm of the sofa, rooting around in what must have been a bag, hidden from view in his current position. Eventually he brought up a bottle.

"I thought we could share some tonight, if you wanted. My sensei... your father did the same for me once."

The teen cocked his head, nodding for him to continue.

"Well, it was the anniversary of my father's death at the time, and he wanted me to stop bottling up my emotions." The casual note with which Kakashi spoke didn't surprise him, somehow. "So we sat down, much like you and I are, now. We drank, we shared our secrets, and we woke up the next morning none the wiser as to what we said. Or at least, _I_ was none the wiser."

Their conversation petered out after that, neither of them really sure what to say. Perhaps on any other day, they'd have started a conversation about something pointless and trivial. But in a situation like this, where Naruto was expected to start talking about _feelings? _It left a tension in the air that was somehow thicker and more awkward than the two of them had felt when he'd seen Kakashi without his mask.

Before he knew it, they'd both cleared their bowls. Naruto took it upon himself to bring them into the kitchen, wanting to do _something _other than sit and wait for the inevitable. It didn't help much, but at least he could focus on something.

"So, did you manage to talk to Iruka today?"

Kakashi's question was accompanied by a small 'pop', marking the opening of his sake bottle. A part of him felt a little thankful for the inclusion of alcohol, but it was a very, _very _small part nonetheless.

"No, I think he was helping some other kids with their work over lunchtime." he replied. "I spotted him through the window though, and he waved at me. So I guess there's that."

"Hmm."

"I decided to run instead. Burn off some energy, ya know? I hadn't been expecting a busy night."

Naruto tried and failed to hide the blush that crept onto his face as he realised what he'd just implied.

"I- I mean..." He tried to correct himself, only to feel even more awkward. "I just meant, because talking takes a lot of energy, right? Well, not just normal talking, of course. Heavy talking. Emotional talking. I... I'm just going to shut up now."

Kakashi didn't reply, but the teen thought he saw the man's shoulders shaking a little as he suppressed a laugh.

'_Damn him'_

Acting on a whim, Naruto strode up to his sensei, plucking the bottle from his fingers and taking a long swig. The alcohol burned a little as it went down, but the burn was soon replaced by a comfortable warmth.

Kakashi, for his part, was staring wide-eyed at him. If his mask had been off, Naruto could just imagine his lips, parted slightly in bewilderment.

It wasn't until Naruto decided to read the bottle that he realised why the jounin was so shocked. He'd bought a particularly strong brew, one that was designed more for sipping than gulping down as he had.

Funnily enough, Naruto felt no different as he passed the bottle back to Kakashi, who lowered his mask just enough to take a rather smaller drink of the sake. He'd somehow managed to keep his face covered during the action, and Naruto couldn't explain why a shred of disappointment coursed through him as a result.

The teen took a deep breath, holding it for as long as he was comfortable. His muscles began to relax as he exhaled; a long, drawn out breath that was as much to relax him as to discern whether the alcohol was taking effect. He had no idea what alcohol was supposed to be like, but he was pretty sure that there should have been more of a reaction than just the warmth that pooled within him.

He took another swig, this time a little less than before, and Kakashi followed suit. Even with less alcohol in his system, his cheeks were growing slightly pink as time went by. It was rather intriguing, seeing how his sensei's expression - or what little of it was visible - changed.

"Are you copying me?" Naruto asked, after a third sip was matched yet again by Kakashi.

"Mmm... perhaps. Or maybe... maybe you're copying me from the future."

"I... have no idea what that's supposed to mean." Naruto mumbled, trying and failing to keep the incredulity from his voice.

"Yeah. Me neither, Nar- Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto."

If there was one thing Naruto hadn't expected, it was that Kakashi had a low alcohol tolerance. But here he was, barely untouched by the very same sake that his sensei was drinking, while he watched the jounin dissolve into a slurring mess.

It was rather amusing, in all honesty.

Time seemed to pass quickly as they drank, and soon enough Naruto upended the bottle only to find that there was no sake left. The warmth within him still persisted, though, and he was beginning to suspect that maybe it had nothing to do with the alcohol in the first place.

No, this feeling, coiled up in the pit of his stomach...

It was _affection._

**_/\/\/_**

**This chapter was meant to take place a month after the events of the last one, but due to a few miscalculations, it's down to being the next day. There will, however, be a few timeskips in the near future, because let's face it, the growth of a child is tedious at best. Events are spaced out at different stages of Haru's childhood, so it would make for a very boring fic if I included the time in between these skips. I'm talking around 3k of no plot development, and that's not very fun.**


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